Physicians have difficulty delivering bad news because of discomfort and lack of appropriate education. We introduce an initiative to enhance trainee comfort in delivering the diagnosis of intrauterine fetal demise (IUFD) through multidisciplinary simulation training.

Twelve obstetrics and gynecology residents participated in perinatal bereavement training with a palliative care specialist utilizing the SPIKES framework, followed by an immersive simulation of an IUFD case and debrief with multidisciplinary physicians. Pre- and post-training surveys were administered. This study was approved by the IRB.

Participants were equally distributed in training year (58% female, 33% male). 92% had previously delivered the diagnosis of IUFD, yet 50% had no previous bereavement training, and of those with training, most (84%) had less than 2 hours. Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests showed statistically significant increase in comfort level of delivering bad news (Z=66; P=.003), delivering a diagnosis of fetal demise (Z=64; P=.005), and having the skills and foundation to deliver the news of a fetal demise (Z=28; P=.017). Qualitative responses identified acquisition of verbal and nonverbal skills such as direct patient communication, using the word death, and sitting down at the patient’s eye level prior to delivering the news. Most described the experience as real, immersive, and a safe learning environment. One hundred percent would recommend the course to others.

Perinatal bereavement education in obstetrics and gynecology residency training is lacking. Multidisciplinary, immersive simulation training significantly increased residents’ comfort and perceived preparedness in delivering the diagnosis of fetal demise.