Bereavement
Susie Wilkinson in Palliative Care Nursing, 2018
This chapter provides guidelines, based on the best available evidence, to assist in the identification of people at risk of adverse bereavement outcomes. It discusses the place of the health professional's own bereavement history, notes the importance of grief education and understanding the person and family, and provides examples of different types of general bereavement support. The chapter presents the guidelines for bereavement risk assessment in family members based on three important assumptions: the timing and people involved in risk assessment; the concept of 'complicated bereavement'; and the importance of targeting bereavement interventions. Complicated bereavement risk assessment involves four key categories of information—the illness, terminal care, and the nature of the death; characteristics of the bereaved; interpersonal relationships; and characteristics of the deceased. Bereavement care, in the form of risk assessment, begins before the death, continues through the illness, and persists into the early bereavement phase.
Loss, grief and bereavement
Tom Gordon, Ewan Kelly, David Mitchell, Stephen Thornton Cbe in Spiritual Care for Healthcare Professionals, 2017
This chapter guides us through a progressive approach to loss, grief and bereavement, beginning with personal experiences and understanding of loss, and considers our professional practice in supporting patients and their family carers in their loss, grief and bereavement. In the early part of the twentieth century, Sigmund Freud defined grief as a set of experiences which would usually follow a predictable course. John Bowlby was the first grief theorist to base his conclusions on empirical evidence. The publication of his trilogy of books outlined the 'attachment theory', which identified how the circumstances surrounding the death of a loved one affected the characteristics, intensity and progress of the grieving process. Through a progressive approach to loss, grief and bereavement, we can use a basic understanding of theory alongside experience to develop skills that enables us to deal with the impact of loss and its contribution to spiritual distress, and to support the patients and their family and carers in care.
Two-Track Model of Bereavement and Considering the Two-Track Model in the Context of Addiction and Recovery
Julie Bates-Maves in Grief and Addiction, 2020
This chapter presents the two-track model of bereavement. Track one centered on functioning and track two centered on the relationship with what one has lost. The intent and purpose of the model are described in detail with emphasis on the idea that it can be helpful to assess both the positive and negative impacts of loss. The latter part of the chapter applies this theoretical model to the addiction and recovery context and notes the template for conversation and assessment inherent in the two-track model. This section broadens such assessment of functioning and adjustment from only one type of loss—death—to other losses, yielding important information for the treatment of substance use and related disorders using a whole-person approach. Areas of concern often present in addictions counseling and are incorporated into the two-track model, reinforcing the utility of this approach with addiction-related loss.
UK childhood bereavement services: A reflection on their development and cultural influence
Published in Bereavement Care, 2019
Childhood bereavement services are a relatively recent form of child welfare provision in the UK. They are predicated on assumptions about the development of children and on an increasing research base that describes the potential impact of childhood bereavement and that support following bereavement is beneficial. UK services largely began as a result of practitioners responding to the needs of bereaved children. Over time, services have become more formalised into an organisational framework, contributing to and influenced by practice based experience, research and training. They have become more sophisticated and wide-ranging in their response to the needs of bereaved children for which there is evidence of a favourable impact on their wellbeing. More importantly, as a structural form of provision now embedded within the UK’s health and social landscape, childhood bereavement services have had a significant impact on social policy and the wider cultural discourse concerning bereaved children.
Bereavement support after the death of a child with cancer: implications for practice
Published in Bereavement Care, 2020
Susan J. Neilson, Faith Gibson, Sheila M. Greenfield
The effects of bereavement are unique and support must be individually tailored. The role of the general practitioner (GP) in paediatric cancer palliative care is wide-ranging and challenging, yet little is known about offered bereavement support in this context. We carried out an in-depth secondary analysis of text relating to bereavement support from a semi-structured interview study exploring GPs’ and parents’ experiences. Findings highlight the importance of early GP-initiated face-to-face contact with parents, exploring opportunities for innovative practice and maintaining close collaboration with hospital-based teams. A co-ordinated, equitable and sustainable approach to bereavement support may help address identified GP knowledge deficits and time-pressures.
The development of a framework to support bereaved children and young people: the Irish Childhood Bereavement Care Pyramid
Published in Bereavement Care, 2015
Anne Marie Jones, Celine Deane, Orla Keegan
Children's bereavement poses a challenge not only for children themselves but for the families, communities, volunteers and professionals who support them. The Irish Childhood Bereavement Network set out to develop a framework to provide a comprehensive guide for children's bereavement support. The model is based on contemporary literature, existing policy and the views of professions, volunteers and parents. The process resulted in the ‘Irish Childhood Bereavement Care Pyramid’. The major pillars of children's needs, support/service responses and staff competencies are described at four levels, basic up to complex. The aim of the Pyramid is to guide adults to ensure that children are provided with the information and reassurance they need around a bereavement, to promote early intervention as appropriate and to recognise those few children who need specialist support to learn to live with their bereavement. Family context and the child's changing developmental status are emphasised as core considerations.
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