Although death and the circumstances surrounding it are inevitable for all people, open discussions of this subject are considered morbid and thus taboo. The fear of death, however, greatly affects the care administered to dying patients in a health care setting by professionals, family, and friends. A mail survey was administered to 247 individuals, aged 24 to 72, identified from five occupational groups in San Diego County: physicians, nurses, clergy, social workers, and psychologists. The fear of death, a dependent variable, was measured by Feifel's Metaphor Scale and a death adjective semantic differential scale. Data analysis revealed that statistical relationships existed between fear of death and occupation, religious affiliation, and religiosity. Multiple regression, however, did not yield many significant correlations. Age, sex, educational level, and death education training had no significant effect on the attitudes toward death among health care providers. Because imprecise measurement of indicators presents a problem in this type of research, more reliable scales are needed. (Data tables are included.) (Author/TW)