A Spiritual Prescription to Bereaved Parents of Children Died Due to Coronavirus Disease 2019

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has severely affected millions of people including children. Un-like adults, most infected children have a milder course and appear to have better outcomes overall. Clinical spectrum of the disease ranged from asymptomatic infection to severe illness and ultimately death. 1,2 Overall prevalence of death from COVID-19 was 20% (18 – 23%), and of those that died, 85% were aged (cid:1) 60 years. 3 The mortality rate was 0.18% in hospitalized children with COVID-19. 1 The death of a child is one of the most stressful incidents that parents and siblings can experience. Interventions for bereaved families following the death of a child have been studied over the past few decades. However, there is little evidence to support any rationale for determining optimal interventions for bereaved parents and siblings. 4 In this article, we present a spiritual prescription to support bereaved parents who have lost a child for any reason, including COVID-19 infection to draw attention to the importance of spiritual support for bereaved parents. Facilitating the “ good death, ” an