Creating Memories: Supporting Bereaved Parents on a Tertiary Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in the Middle East

Background: The loss of a baby, at any gestation, antenatal or post-natal, is devastating experience for a family irrespective of whether the loss was anticipated or not; the journey of the pregnancy did not reach the expected happy outcome. Our 64-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is one of the largest in the United Arab Emirates. We noted that we had an inconsistent approach to bereaved families. An internal brainstorming exercise identified that most of these inconsistencies centered on the uncertainty (and sometimes fear) of causing additional distress to parents whilst trying to do the needful especially as Islamic funerals are organized and conducted quickly, usually within the same day of death. Method: This paper is a retrospective review of the bereavement service which was created in 2016 following changes that were guided by a gap-analysis. Results: It describes the outcome of steps taken to improve our support to parents and families during an acutely painful time- the impending loss and/or subsequent loss of their child- in a structured manner that also allows flexibility. Conclusion: Staff have learned through specialized in-house bereavement training and feedback via the NICU bereavement team, about the importance of sensitively handling the family and the body of the child in accordance with parental customs and expectations. They have additionally learned to offer parents the opportunity to create memory boxes, the content of which is decided by the parents.