Bereavement: caring for families and friends after a patient dies.

New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center is a large academic medical center that provided minimal, if any, bereavement support to families and loved ones of patients who died in the hospital. A comprehensive bereavement program was developed and implemented which included sending condolence cards to family members and friends, follow-up phone calls to screen for complicated grief, individual counseling, bereavement support groups, community referrals, and an annual memorial service for families and staff to provide an opportunity for shared mourning during the grieving process.