Abstract
The purpose of this article is to encourage nurses who care for dying patients to take a proactive role as advocates for children who will be left behind. Pediatric nurses and nurses who give end-of-life care to those who are parents have a unique opportunity to help families understand the needs of bereaved children. This article focuses exclusively on infants and toddlers (0 to 36 months). Using a developmental perspective, a summary of what is known about young children's physical, emotional, and behavioral response to loss and death both immediately and long-term is presented. Suggestions are given for ways to maximize infants and toddlers' coping and facilitate their grief. Special attention is given to interventions that will help in the future as they grow older and reprocess their loss.