ABSTRACT
Death is a human experience that confronts all of us with our own mortality. This
is especially true when the object of death is someone our own age or slightly
younger. However, one of the most overwhelming and devastating experiences
with death for any family, particularly parents, is the death of a child. Note these
words of Al Miles:
‘‘Whether the child dies during the first trimester of pregnancy, at or shortly after
birth, from an accident or terminal disease, in home, hospital, or hospice, as an
adolescent, or in adulthood, parents and family members are devastated by this
tragedy. The natural order of life has been disrupted.’’
