Nurses' Grief Counseling for Bereaved Family Members of COVID-19 Patients in Wuhan, China: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract Background It is widely recognised, that family members are central to care of people with advanced illness, and that support should be provided to all family members in need thereof. The aim of this study was to investigate family members’ experiences of support received during the last three months of life, at the time of death and after the death of a person with advanced illness. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional survey design was employed, using the VOICES(SF) questionnaire and multiple methods for data analyses. The sample consisted of 485 bereaved family members (aged: 20–90 years old, 70% women) of people who died in hospital between August 2016-April 2017. Results Of the family members, 58,8% reported they had received enough help and support during the illness, whereas 30,2% had not. Family members’ comments about support during the illness were mainly related to care the ill person had or had not received, rather than about support they themselves received. Of all family members, 52,8% reported having had enough support at the time of the ill person’s death. Related to support at death, 14,6% reported that the imminence of death was not clear, which was described as having affected their opportunity to be with the dying person at the time of death. Of all, 25,2% had a follow-up conversation after the death, 48% did not and did not want to, and 21% had no follow-up conversation, but would have liked one. A follow-up conversation was described as helpful for the bereavement process, and disappointment was expressed when not receiving support after the death. Conclusions Family members’ experiences of support were partly related to whether the ill person’s care needs were fulfilled. Healthcare staff expressing empathy and respect in the care of dying people and their family members were important for family members’ experiences of support. Family members’ difficulty recognising that death was imminent and the importance of healthcare staff providing them with clear information were expressed in connection with support at death. Follow-up conversations were valued by family members, especially if with a healthcare professional who was present at the time of death.

Download Full-text

Support for families of patients dying with dementia: A qualitative analysis of bereaved family members' experiences and suggestions

Palliative & Supportive Care ◽

10.1017/s1478951513001107 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 13 (3) ◽

pp. 435-442 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Pia Muders ◽

Corinna Aruna Zahrt-Omar ◽

Sonja Bussmann ◽

Julia Haberstroh ◽

Martin Weber

Keyword(s):

Emotional Support ◽

Care Setting ◽

Healthcare Professionals ◽

Family Members ◽

Professional Support ◽

Terminal Phase ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Disease Trajectory ◽

Bereaved Family

AbstractObjective:To explore and document the needs of family caregivers of patients dying with dementia and to identify how healthcare professionals can adequately support them.Method:We employed a cross-sectional survey containing open-ended questions that were analyzed using qualitative methods.Results:Receiving information about the diagnosis and disease trajectory of dementia is essential for the caregiving families of people dying with the disease. However, at present the communication of information offered by professionals is not experienced as satisfying. Further aspects that require improvement concern issues related to time constraints, as well as practical and emotional support from professionals in the care setting. Family members would also like professionals to better assist them during and after the dying process.Significance of Results:Family members face multiple burdens while caring for their demented relatives and need more professional support during the course of the disease trajectory as well as in the terminal phase.

Download Full-text

Bereaved Family Members’ Satisfaction with Care during the Last Three Months of Life for People with Advanced Illness

Healthcare ◽

10.3390/healthcare6040130 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 130 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Anna O’Sullivan ◽

Anette Alvariza ◽

Joakim Öhlen ◽

Cecilia Håkanson

Keyword(s):

Educational Attainment ◽

Hospice Care ◽

Survey Design ◽

Family Members ◽

Satisfaction With Care ◽

Advanced Illness ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Deceased Person ◽

Bereaved Family

Background: Studies evaluating the end-of-life care for longer periods of illness trajectories and in several care places are currently lacking. This study explored bereaved family members’ satisfaction with care during the last three months of life for people with advanced illness, and associations between satisfaction with care and characteristics of the deceased individuals and their family members. Methods: A cross-sectional survey design was used. The sample was 485 family members of individuals who died at four different hospitals in Sweden. Results: Of the participants, 78.7% rated the overall care as high. For hospice care, 87.1% reported being satisfied, 87% with the hospital care, 72.3% with district/county nurses, 65.4% with nursing homes, 62.1% with specialized home care, and 59.6% with general practitioners (GPs). Family members of deceased persons with cancer were more likely to have a higher satisfaction with the care. A lower satisfaction was more likely if the deceased person had a higher educational attainment and a length of illness before death of one year or longer. Conclusion: The type of care, diagnoses, length of illness, educational attainment, and the relationship between the deceased person and the family member influences the satisfaction with care.

Download Full-text

Support Received by Family Members Before, at and After an Ill Person’s Death

10.21203/rs.3.rs-273795/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Anna O´Sullivan ◽

Anette Alvariza ◽

Joakim Öhlén ◽

Cecilia Larsdotter

Keyword(s):

Survey Design ◽

Family Members ◽

Time Of Death ◽

Healthcare Staff ◽

Care Needs ◽

Advanced Illness ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Bereaved Family

Abstract Background: It is widely recognised, that family members are central to care of people with advanced illness, and that support should be provided to all family members in need thereof. The aim of this study was to investigate family members’ experiences of support received during the last three months of life, at the time of death and after the death of a person with advanced illness. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional survey design was employed, using the VOICES(SF) questionnaire and multiple methods for data analyses. The sample consisted of 485 bereaved family members (aged: 20-90 years old, 70% women) of people who died in hospital between August 2016-April 2017.Results: Of the family members, 58,8% reported they had received enough help and support during the illness, whereas 30,2% had not. Family members’ comments about support during the illness were mainly related to care the ill person had or had not received, rather than about support they themselves received. Of all family members, 52,8% reported having had enough support at the time of the ill person’s death. Related to support at death, 14,6% reported that the imminence of death was not clear, which was described as having affected their opportunity to be with the dying person at the time of death. Of all, 25,2% had a follow-up conversation after the death, 48% did not and did not want to, and 21% had no follow-up conversation, but would have liked one. A follow-up conversation was described as helpful for the bereavement process, and disappointment was expressed when not receiving support after the death. Conclusions: Family members’ experiences of support were partly related to whether the ill person’s care needs were fulfilled. Healthcare staff expressing empathy and respect in the care of dying people and their family members were important for family members’ experiences of support. Family members’ difficulty recognising that death was imminent and the importance of healthcare staff providing them with clear information were expressed in connection with support at death. Follow-up conversations were valued by family members, especially if with a healthcare professional who was present at the time of death.

Download Full-text

How Did Italian Adolescents with Disability and Parents Deal with the COVID-19 Emergency?

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18041687 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 1687

Author(s):

Silvia Faccioli ◽

Francesco Lombardi ◽

Pierantonio Bellini ◽

Stefania Costi ◽

Silvia Sassi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Assistive Technology ◽

Healthcare Professionals ◽

Family Members ◽

Anxiety Symptoms ◽

Rehabilitation Services ◽

Disabled Children ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Italian Adolescents

The COVID-19 emergency has imposed distanced education and has interrupted most rehabilitation services. Adolescents with disabilities have been isolated, and the burden on their families has been exacerbated. A cross-sectional survey was administered to adolescents with disability and to parents of disabled children to describe their experience during lockdown and their concerns or expectations about rehabilitation. A sample of 53 adolescents and 239 parents completed the survey. Adolescents were ages 13–18 years old (45.3% female). Most parents were between 35 and 55 years old (84.9% female). While 53.6% of the parents reported no positive effects of the lockdown, 92.5% of the adolescents expressed favorable consequences. The increased time spent with family members was judged positively by 27.2% of parents and by 64.2% of adolescents. Concern for their child’s disability was expressed by 47.3% of parents, while 73.6% of adolescents expressed concerns regarding the ban on meeting friends. In both groups, anxiety symptoms were correlated with the fear of contracting COVID-19 and with financial problems. Parents would have liked even more remote support from school and healthcare professionals, which was available for most participants. Thus, socioeconomic support, assistive technology and telerehabilitation strategies might help families with disabilities during a lockdown.

Download Full-text

Nursing students' attitudes, knowledge, and willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine: A cross-sectional study

10.1101/2021.05.24.21257710 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ning Jiang ◽

Baojian Wei ◽

Hua Lin ◽

Youjuan Wang ◽

Shouxia Chai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Side Effects ◽

Influencing Factors ◽

Family Members ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

School Students ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Vaccine Acceptance ◽

Academic Background ◽

To Receive

Aim: To investigate nursing students' konwledge, attitudes and willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and the influencing factors. Background: Vaccination is one of the effective measures to prevent COVID-19, but the vaccination acceptance varies across countries and populations. As reserve nurses, nursing students have both the professionalism of medical personnel and the special characteristics of school students, their attitudes, knowledge, and willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine may greatly affect the vaccine acceptance of the population now and in the future. But little research has been done on vaccine acceptance among nursing students. Design: A cross-sectional survey of nursing students was conducted via online questionnaires in March 2021. Methods: Descriptive statistics, independent sample t tests/one-way ANOVA (normal distribution), Mann-Whitney U tests/Kruskal-Wallis H tests (skewness distribution) and multivariate linear regression were performed. Results: The score rate of attitude, knowledge and vaccination willingness were 70.07%, 80.70% and 84.38% respectively. Attitude was significantly influenced by family economic conditions and whether a family member had been vaccinated. The main factors influencing knowledge were gender, grade and academic background. In terms of willingness, gender, academic background, visits to risk areas, whether family members were vaccinated, and whether they had side effects were significant influencing factors. Conclusions: The vaccine acceptance of nursing students was fair. Greater focus needed to be placed on the males, those of younger age, with a science background, and having low grades, as well as on students whose family members had not received the COVID-19 vaccine or had side effects from the vaccine. Targeted intervention strategies were recommended to improve vaccination rates.

Download Full-text

The impact of COVID-19 on oncologists: Experience from Egyptian physicians.

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.2021.39.15_suppl.e13514 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 39 (15_suppl) ◽

pp. e13514-e13514

Author(s):

Abeid Mohamed Athman Omar ◽

Marwa Ramadan ◽

Yomna Khamis ◽

Abdelsalam A. Ismail

Keyword(s):

Family Support ◽

Occupational Safety ◽

Family Members ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Middle Income ◽

Middle Income Countries ◽

Burnout Rate ◽

Almost All ◽

The Impact

e13514 Background: The unprecedented emergence of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has disrupted the patients' and physicians' daily activities, including cancer care. However, little is known on how COVID-19 has impacted oncologists from low and middle-income countries. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among eighty-eight practicing oncologists in Alexandria governorate, Egypt. An electronic, anonymized self-reporting survey was distributed in February 2020 to collect information on occupational safety measures, the prevalence of COVID-19 among respondents, workload, and family support during the pandemic Results: Out of 88 contacted oncologists, 75% completed the survey (n=66). Nearly half (45%) of respondents were residents, 36% were specialists, and 18% were consultants. The mean age of respondents was 34.79 years (SD ±10.42). More than half of the respondents were not comfortable managing cancer patients during the pandemic (56%) and did not feel well-protected at the workplace (58%). However, most (79%) had managed a cancer patient with COVID-19 more than once. Furthermore, almost all participants (98%) have worked with an infected colleague. Nevertheless, to more than half (54%), it made no difference working with a colleague who was previously infected. Most physicians (79%) felt overwhelmed with workload than the pre-pandemic period. Despite being COVID-19 negative, nearly half reported their family members had reduced contact with them due to the fear of being infected. In contrast, 24% are now getting more family support, whereas 27% are experiencing the same contact level as before the COVID-19 era. Physicians lacking family support had a significantly higher burnout rate than those who had family support (p=0.038). However, the burnout rate was similar regardless of doctors' rank, or treating COVID-19 patients, or feeling protected at work. The majority of the participants (75%) had experienced COVID-19 like symptoms, and one third (n=21) were confirmed COVID-19 infected: residents - 52%, specialists - 33%, and consultants - 14%. Nevertheless, we found no association between the rank and being infected with COVID-19 (p=0.632). Most participants thought they were infected at the hospital (38% by patients; 24% by colleagues), and 14% by family members. However, there was no significant association between being infected and feeling protected at work (p=0.823). Most of the infected physicians (61%) received moral support from both the family and colleagues, and 33% received family support only. There was no association between burnout rate and being COVID-19 infected (p=0.719). Conclusions: One-third of the oncologists were COVID-19 positive. Besides, most oncologists feel overwhelmed with workload and experience more burnout than before the COVID-19 era, and it worsens if one lacks family support.

Download Full-text

Care for Imminently Dying Cancer Patients: Family Members' Experiences and Recommendations

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.2009.23.2793 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 142-148 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Takuya Shinjo ◽

Tatsuya Morita ◽

Kei Hirai ◽

Mitsunori Miyashita ◽

Kazuki Sato ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cancer Patients ◽

Emotional Distress ◽

Medical Staff ◽

Family Members ◽

Nationwide Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Dying Patients ◽

The Family ◽

High Level ◽

Bereaved Family

Purpose The aim of this study was to clarify the level of emotional distress experienced by bereaved family members and the perceived necessity for improvement in the care for imminently dying patients and to explore possible causes of distress and alleviating measures. Methods A cross-sectional nationwide survey was performed in 2007 of bereaved families of cancer patients at 95 palliative care units across Japan. Results Questionnaires were sent to 670 families, and 76% responded. Families reported their experiences as very distressing in 45% of cases. Regarding care, 1.2% of respondents believed that a lot of improvement was needed, compared with 58% who believed no improvement was needed. Determinants of high-level distress were a younger patient age, being a spouse, and overhearing conversations between the medical staff outside the room at the time of the patient's death; those reporting high-level necessity of improvement were less likely to have encountered attempts to ensure the patient's comfort, received less family coaching on how to care for the patient, and felt that insufficient time was allowed for the family to grieve after the patient's death. Conclusion A considerable number of families experienced severe emotional distress when their family member died. Thus, we propose that a desirable care concept for imminently dying cancer patients should include relief of patient suffering, family advisement on how to care for the patient, allowance of enough time for the family to grieve, and ensuring that family members cannot overhear medical staff conversations at the time of the patient's death.

Download Full-text