TOP TAKE-AWAY: GUIDELINES FOR DEALING WITH PREGNANCY LOSS IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

Many women who have experienced pregnancy loss often state that nurses, doctors and other medical professionals appear insensitive or uninformed when it comes to discussing their pregnancy loss. It has been established in the research that how women are treated by medical professionals can significantly impact their grieving process. Therefore, it is important that women and their families experiencing pregnancy loss are receiving proper support, care and information from their medical team.

The National Perinatal Association and Kaiser Permanente Northern California Nursing Research Community Benefits Grant held a conference in Houston, Texas in 2016 to discuss improving the support and care emergency departments provide for women experiencing pregnancy loss. Some of the medical professionals in attendance included nurses, physicians, social workers, counselors, authors, etc. Together, they helped develop care guidelines for emergency departments to follow when they are presented with pregnancy loss. This is a huge step in the medical field that will help provide women and their families with the necessary physical and emotional care and support when experiencing such a devastating loss.

It was decided that emergency departments should use a relationship-based, patient-centered, family-focused and team-oriented approach for women and their families to provide the best support and care based on the families’ needs. Some key elements of the approach included:

1. Appropriate terms to discuss pregnancy loss. Some acceptable terms included products of conception, fetal remains, miscarriage, stillbirth, and baby.
2. The privacy and safety provided in the medical rooms for the woman and family;
3. The use of medical markers on patient records so other medical professionals are made aware and can provide appropriate care;
4. Providing information related to post-pregnancy loss recovery and common events/stages that may occur (i.e., lactation and the need for breast care, hormonal changes, postpartum depression and anxiety, etc).
5. Providing women with resources such as counseling and support groups information.

Women’s experience in the emergency department can set the tone for their journey through coping with pregnancy loss. Being supportive, caring and providing resources that can help the women and their families cope can have a tremendous impact on their quality of life. It is important that medical professionals receive the proper training so that they are able to provide the best support, care and information for the women and their families. It is reassuring to know that attention is finally being brought to this important yet often overlooked ED experience.


Reference:

Catlin, A. (2018). Interdisciplinary guidelines for care of women presenting to the emergency department with pregnancy loss. MCN: The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, 43(1), 13–18. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=psyh&AN=2017-54728-003&site=ehost-live