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On the merits of writing to the next of kin after the death of your patient: an Australian perspective

Roger K A Allen
Med J Aust 2007; 186 (8): . || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2007.tb00980.x
Published online: 16 April 2007

It has long been my practice to write a letter of condolence to the next of kin of any patient of mine who has died. As a thoracic and sleep physician, I share a practice with my wife (a psychiatrist) in rooms attached to a private city hospital. I rarely see patients in their own environment, as most come from outlying suburbs or provincial towns. Nevertheless, I get to know many patients quite well, sometimes over a period of many years.


  • Wesley Medical Centre, Brisbane, QLD.


Correspondence: rogerallen@internode.on.net

Competing interests:

None identified.

  • 1. Allen RKA. Remembrance of things past: reveries of a sleep physician. Intern Med J 2002; 32: 429-431.
  • 2. Bedell SE, Cadenhead K, Graboys TB. The doctor’s letter of condolence. New Engl J Med 2001; 344: 1162-1164.
  • 3. Allen RKA. East Timor — personal reflections. Aust Milit Med 2004; 13: 23-29.

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