Princess Margaret Hospital, Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care Program, Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
Published: March 2008
AI Article Synopsis
Article Abstract
Objective: The loss of a child can be traumatic for parents, given the profound bond established with the deceased child. Parental bereavement and the need for bereavement services are not well understood. This study examined parental perspectives regarding bereavement services from a pediatric oncology treating center.
Methods: A 2-h focus group of seven parents, audiotaped and transcribed verbatim, was conducted by two facilitators using open-ended questions to generate discussion regarding their views of what services were or would be helpful during early bereavement.
Results: Parents perceived flexible and continuous bereavement services from the treating hospital as a necessary transition to community services. Talking to other parents with similar experiences and maintaining contact with staff at the treating hospital were considered critical in their healing after the loss.
Significance Of Results: Transitional multimodality bereavement services offered by the treating hospital will improve the quality of life of bereaved families.
Objectives: Fortunately, operating room deaths and unexpected deaths are infrequent occurrences. However, when they occur, the surgeon is called upon to deliver this news to family and loved ones. There is a paucity of literature on this topic and little guidance preparing cardiothoracic surgeons for this important but difficult situation.
Background: Bereavement support is considered a core standard of care for paediatric palliative care (PPC) teams. Support for grieving siblings can present unique challenges. Developmentally appropriate care can help children navigate their grief experience.
Bereavement during childhood impacts children's wellbeing and biopsychosocial development. Research examining impacts and outcomes of childhood bereavement and supportive interventions has highlighted a myriad of factors that influence children's unique, complex experiences of grief, necessitating a personalized, child-centred approach. Children's grief support is underpinned by well-established grief theories studied primarily in adult populations, and stage-based developmental theories that characterise child development as "normative" and universal.
Based on continuing bonds theory, this research assessed the manifestation of a continuing relationship for bereaved parents with their deceased offspring who is buried in a different country. This qualitative interpretive phenomenological study is based on interviews with seven bereaved parents whose offspring died during military service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and were buried in Israel, whilst the parents live outside of Israel. Analysis revealed three themes: (a) fulfillment of their offspring's will; (b) commemoration; (c) physical and emotional proximity to their offspring.
