I found an article that looks at the reactions of children when there is a serious illness in the family, especially when that illness occurs in a sibling. It looks at a new program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital that deals with helping the siblings of cancer patients along with their adjustment to having a sick brother or sister.

They teach things like using good coping mechanisms to deal with stress and anxiety. Working on communication with caregivers and other family members is also stressed in order to help a family in crisis understand that they are all coping together.

I like seeing articles like this since I think that our patient care doesn’t end with the patient. Understanding stressors related to the family environment, relationships, and poor communication skills can go a long way towards helping us provide care in a way that supports the patient and the network of support behind them that will care for them when we are gone.