Abstract
Background and Objectives
To describe provider preparedness and experiences engaging families after a patient overdose death.
Methods
We used descriptive statistics to summarize responses to a national survey of interdisciplinary providers.
Results
Participants (n = 524; 47,937 invited) agreed that providers should communicate with a patient’s family after an overdose death (78.2% agreed), yet few felt very well prepared to do so (22.6%).
Discussion and Conclusions
Providers inconsistently contacted families despite believing these interactions are opportunities to improve family and provider coping.
Scientific Significance
There is a potential need for interventions addressing this discrepancy between providers’ desired behaviors and practice contacting families following a patient death.