Nursing care in perinatal grief. A systematic and critical review of attitudes and knowledge in clinical practice

Abstract

Aim

To review and synthesize the available evidence on the attitudes and knowledge of nurses regarding the perinatal grief of the parents.

Methods

A systematic review of original articles published from January 2016 to February 2023 without language limit in the Scopus, PubMed, Cinahl, PsycINFO, ScienceDirect and Web Of Science databases was carried out. The Prisma Statement methodological framework was used for systematic reviews and meta-analyses. The entire process was carried out in pairs, with discrepancies being resolved by a third reviewer. The quality of the articles was evaluated following the CASPe criteria (Critical Appraisal Skills Program Spanish).

Results

Twelve articles were obtained in this review after applying the inclusion criteria, of which. Except for one cross-sectional quantitative study (8.33%), the rest were qualitative studies carried out through interviews (75%) or discussion groups (16.66%). It is highlighted that there are different biopsychosocial problems related to the care needs demanded by the family and that, due to poor training or culture of the health professional, are not adequately addressed.

Discussion

The studies found show various resources to adequately attend to perinatal grief, there being discrepancies in relation to allowing or not allowing the body of the deceased baby to be shown and/or taken; There are also disagreements regarding whether the healthcare team should base its practice on protocols or theories such as the Kubler-Ross theory of grief. Most of the studies (75%) consider that more training and awareness is necessary, contemplating the biopsychosocial nature of the user.