DEFINE AND EXPLAIN THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A SURVIVAL ACTION AND A WRONGFUL DEATH ACTION

A wrongful death action is filed by spouses, children, and/or parents of the deceased individual to compensate for their own personal loss whereas A survival action is taken on the part of the victim's estate for any pain and suffering the individual endured between the time of the accident and their actual time of death.

http://www.qrglaw.com/PracticeAreas/Wrongful-Death.asp

In order to bring a successful wrongful death cause of action, the following elements must be present:

The death of a human being;
Caused by another's negligence;
Loss as a result of the death, and;
The survival of family members or others named by a particular state's statute as being entitled to sue.

A wrongful death claim may arise out of a number of circumstances, such as in the following situations:

Medical malpractice that results in decedent's death;
Automobile or airplane accident;
Occupational exposure to hazardous conditions or substances;
Death during a supervised activity.

Damages
Pecuniary, or financial, injury is the main measure of damages in a wrongful death action. Courts have interpreted "pecuniary injuries" as including the loss of support, services, lost prospect of inheritance, and medical and funeral expenses. Most laws provide that the damages awarded for a wrongful death shall be fair and just compensation for the pecuniary injuries to the persons for whose benefit the action is brought, resulting from the decedent's death. If the persons bringing the action paid or are responsible for the funeral expenses or medical care incidental to the injury that caused the decedent's death, they may also recover those expenses. Finally, a damage award will include interest from the date of the decedent's death. State statutes vary on whether interest may be recovered.

source: http://www.sparrlaw.com/WrongfulDeathCenter.shtml

The grounds for pursuing a survival action are the "conscious and suffering" endured by the deceased before death. This refers to the degree of consciousness, severity and duration of the apprehension of impending death (before death). While it may be difficult for family members to consider such factors, the lawyer handling your claim should be familiar with personal injury litigation and have access to a variety of medical experts that will help establish the circumstances of the deceased's passing and present the trauma caused to the deceased by his/her wrongful death.

source:
http://www.fightingforyou.com/survival-action-a-65-4.html

(3)CREATE A BRIEF FACT SITUATION THAT COULD LEAD TO BOTH A SURVIVAL ACTION AND WRONGFUL DEATH ACTION.

Where death is caused by negligence, both a wrongful death action and a survival action may be brought. A wrongful death is an unnecessary death that has been caused by the negligence of another person. Examples of wrongful death cases are deaths caused by a drunk, reckless or careless driver, deaths caused by the manufacture of an unsafe, defective or dangerous product, or even deaths caused by a physician who fails to diagnose a treatable disease.

source: http://www.coloradolaw.net/html/death.html

For example, a person dies in an accident due to negligence of a drunk driver. Now, in such a scenario, wrongful death action may be brought by the decedent's (the deceased person's) spouse, children, parents, siblings or closest relative for money lost because of the decedent's death. At the same time, They can also file for survival action to recover money for pain and suffering and costs such as funeral costs,etc.

source: http://www.marlerclark.com/wrongful_death.htm