Industry
Supporting Care Staff Through Bereavement and End-of-Life Care
Care workers often get to know the people they support very well. They help with the most personal parts of daily life, share conversations and laughter, and sometimes become like family. So when a resident or client dies, staff can feel a real sense of loss.
Yet care workers’ grief is often overlooked. Death can be seen as “part of the job”, and staff may be expected to carry on as normal. This guide explains how bereavement affects care teams and what care providers can do to support their people through end-of-life care and loss.
Why grief affects care workers
Care workers build close relationships over months or even years. When someone they’ve cared for dies, they may feel:
Sadness and loss, sometimes as strong as losing a friend or relative
Guilt, wondering if they could have done more
Shock, if the death was sudden or happened while they were off shift
Anger or frustration, especially if they felt the person’s final days didn’t go as they’d hoped
Numbness, particularly after several deaths close together
A 2026 study of care home staff in Scotland, published in BMJ Open, found that staff described bereavement as woven through everyday care home life. They often formed close, family-like bonds with residents and their relatives.
Disenfranchised grief: when loss isn’t recognised
Disenfranchised grief is grief that isn’t openly acknowledged or supported by others. Care workers may experience this because:
They’re not family, so their loss may not be recognised
They’re expected to stay professional and keep working
They may not be told about a death until after the funeral
There’s little time to process one loss before caring for someone else
When grief goes unrecognised, it can build up over time and affect wellbeing.
The impact of repeated loss
In care homes, hospices and home care, staff may experience many deaths over the course of a year. Repeated loss can lead to:
Emotional exhaustion and compassion fatigue
Feeling detached or “switching off” to cope
Low mood, anxiety or poor sleep
Burnout and wanting to leave the sector
Adult social care in England already faces high staff turnover. Skills for Care’s 2025 report found a turnover rate of 24.7% in the independent sector. Supporting staff through loss is one way to help keep experienced people in care.
Warning signs to look out for
Managers and colleagues are often the first to notice when someone is struggling with grief. Signs can include:
Seeming withdrawn, tearful or flat
Avoiding residents or clients who are nearing the end of life
Becoming detached or less caring than usual
Irritability or short temper with colleagues
Taking more sick leave
Talking about feeling overwhelmed or wanting to leave
If you notice these signs, a quiet, private conversation is a good first step. Acknowledge the loss, listen and let them know support is available.
Practical ways to support care staff through bereavement
Acknowledge the loss
Tell staff about a death as soon as possible, in person where you can
Make sure staff who were off shift or on leave are told too
Recognise that grief is a normal response, not a sign of weakness
Give staff time to say goodbye
Where possible, let staff spend a few moments with the person after they’ve died
Give a short break before moving straight on to the next task
Allow flexibility in the rota for staff who are particularly affected
Hold debriefs and reflective sessions
Hold a short team debrief after a death, especially a sudden or difficult one
Offer regular reflective practice sessions where staff can talk about their experiences
Encourage peer support, so colleagues can look out for each other
Create rituals of remembrance
Hold a short moment of reflection or remembrance for the person
Keep a memory book or remembrance board
Let staff attend funerals where the family welcomes it, and cover shifts so they can go
Support new and young staff
Prepare new staff for the possibility of death before it happens
Pair them with an experienced colleague the first time they care for someone who is dying
Check in with them afterwards, as a first death can be particularly difficult
Train staff in end-of-life care
Training in end-of-life care, communication with families and bereavement can help staff feel more confident. Face-to-face training and reflective discussion can be more helpful than online modules alone for the emotional side of the work.
Supporting staff while they support families
Care workers often comfort grieving relatives while managing their own feelings. To help:
Build trusting relationships with families before the end of life, so difficult conversations feel easier
Give staff clear guidance on what to say and do when a family is grieving
Make sure staff don’t feel they have to hide their own emotions completely
Support staff who’ve had a difficult conversation with a family afterwards
Many care workers work alone in people’s homes, so they may experience a death without colleagues nearby. Make sure lone workers know who to call and get a check-in afterwards.
How an EAP helps care providers
An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) gives your whole team confidential support whenever they need it, including evenings, weekends and night shifts. With Wisdom Wellbeing, your staff can access:
A 24/7 confidential helpline for emotional support
Short-term structured counselling, including bereavement counselling
Critical incident support after sudden or traumatic deaths
The Wisdom app, with self-help tools and wellbeing content
Manager support and guidance on supporting grieving staff
For more on supporting care teams, read our guide to staff wellbeing in social care, or find out more about our EAP and wellbeing support for the care sector. If your organisation also employs clinical staff, our guide to healthcare staff wellbeing may help too.
FAQs
Is it normal for care workers to grieve when a resident dies?
Yes. Care workers often build close relationships with the people they support, so feeling sadness, loss or guilt after a death is a normal response. Their grief deserves to be acknowledged and supported.
What is disenfranchised grief in care work?
Disenfranchised grief is grief that isn’t openly recognised or supported. Care workers may experience it because they’re not family and are expected to carry on working after a death.
How can care homes support staff after a resident dies?
Tell staff promptly, give them time to say goodbye, hold a short debrief, create rituals of remembrance and let staff attend funerals where the family welcomes it. Make sure staff know how to access confidential support.
How can care providers support new staff through their first death?
Prepare them before it happens, pair them with an experienced colleague when caring for someone at the end of life, and check in with them afterwards.
Can an EAP provide bereavement counselling for care staff?
Yes. An EAP gives care staff confidential, 24/7 access to emotional support and counselling, including bereavement counselling, so they can talk through their loss and get help when they need it.
Sources
BMJ Open, Bereavement practices within older adult care homes in Scotland: a focus group study
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