ABSTRACT
The key to looking after the people involved when things go wrong is good communication. When an adverse event occurs in healthcare there must be an immediate response by the team. These are Secure the situation, record what happened, what was done, and what is to be done, plan the initial contact with the patient and/or family and friends, the first meeting, and the subsequent meetings. After the bad news has been given, a more definitive meeting should be suggested and planned. A checklist for planning meetings for handling bad news is: Venue and timing, Who should be there? Conduct of the meetings, communication, trust, empathy, respect, listening, soliciting questions, cultural sensitivity, and recognizing and dealing with emotional responses. If the family wishes to make a complaint or consider litigation then they should be given advice on how to go about this. Protracted, adversarial medico-legal proceedings can be very damaging to all concerned, not least those laying the complaints.
