Correction: Efficacy, Benefits, and Harms of a Self-management App in a Swedish Trauma-Exposed Community Sample (PTSD Coach): Randomized Controlled Trial.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.2196/31419.].

Psychometric evaluation of the Swedish Traumatic Grief Inventory Self-Report Plus (TGI-SR+) in bereaved parents.

The International Classification of Diseases Eleventh Edition (ICD-11), and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-5-TR), now include prolonged grief disorder (PGD). Since criteria for PGD in both classification systems differ from prior proposed grief disorders and each other, the validation of a single instrument to screen for prolonged grief (PG) symptoms of both new diagnoses is critical for bereavement research and care. Therefore, we evaluated the psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the Traumatic Grief Inventory Self-Report Plus (TGI-SR+). Two-hundred and forty-eight bereaved parents completed questions about sociodemographic and loss-related variables, the TGI-SR+, and symptom measures of post-traumatic stress (PTS), depression and an older measure of PG symptoms, the Prolonged Grief Disorder-13 (PG-13). Confirmatory factor analyses showed that a one-factor model best fit DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 PG symptoms and the analyses of the internal consistency and inter-item correlations showed that these symptoms could be reliably assessed. In support of convergent validity, DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 PG symptoms correlated with symptoms of PTS, depression and PG assessed with the PG-13. In support of known-groups validity, DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 PG symptoms were higher among lower educated (vs. higher educated) participants and related negatively to time since loss. ROC analyses showed optimal cut-off score of ≥71 and ≥72 to determine probable caseness for DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 PGD, respectively. Results support the reliability and validity of the Swedish TGI-SR+ as a screening instrument for PG in research and bereavement care.

Communication about diagnosis and prognosis-A population-based survey among bereaved parents in pediatric oncology.

INTRODUCTION: When a child is diagnosed with cancer, the whole family is affected, and parents struggle to grasp challenging information regarding diagnosis and prognosis. Most parents and children want honest communication and openness, yet this remains a complex and challenging task for healthcare professionals. OBJECTIVES: To describe bereaved mothers' and fathers' reports of communication of their child's cancer diagnosis and when the illness became incurable. METHODS: Data from a Swedish population-based survey conducted in 2016, including 135 mothers and 97 fathers who had lost a child to cancer 1-5 years earlier, were studied regarding the parents' reports of communication about their child's illness. RESULTS: A vast majority of parents wants information when their child's illness becomes incurable, and this need is generally met. However, fathers to a lesser extent than mothers, reported that they were informed about it. According to parents' reports 87% of children received diagnostic information and 44% of the children received prognostic information. CONCLUSION: A vast majority of both mothers and fathers would like to know when their child's illness becomes incurable, yet it remains unknown to what extent they want their child to be informed.

Daily uplifts during the COVID-19 pandemic: what is considered helpful in everyday life?

BACKGROUND: Knowledge of what is uplifting and helpful during pandemics could inform the design of sustainable pandemic recommendations in the future. We have explored individuals' views on helpful and uplifting aspects of everyday life during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: Participants answered a brief, daily survey via text messages during 14 consecutive days in July-August, 2020. The survey included the question: "During the past 24 hours, is there anything that has made you feel good or helped you in your life?" We used content analysis to compile responses from 693 participants, who provided 4,490 free-text answers, which resulted in 24 categories subsumed under 7 themes. RESULTS: Positive aspects during the COVID-19 pandemic primarily related to social interactions, in real life or digitally, with family, friends and others. Other important aspects concerning work, colleagues and maintaining everyday life routines. One theme concerning vacations, going on excursions and being in nature. Leisure and recreation activities, such as hobbies and physical exercise, also emerged as important, as did health-related factors. Bodily sensations, thoughts, feelings and activities that benefited well-being were mentioned frequently. Lastly, people commented on the government strategies for containing COVID-19, and whether to comply with restrictions. CONCLUSIONS: To summarize, daily uplifts and helpful aspects of everyday life centered around social relationships. To comply with recommendations on physical distancing, people found creative ways to maintain social connections both digitally and face-to-face. Social interaction, maintenance of everyday life routines, hobbies and physical activity appeared to be important for well-being.

Efficacy, Benefits, and Harms of a Self-management App in a Swedish Trauma-Exposed Community Sample (PTSD Coach): Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Self-guided interventions may complement and overcome obstacles to in-person treatment options. The efficacy of app interventions targeting posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is unclear, and results from previous studies on PTSD Coach-an app for managing trauma-related distress-are inconsistent. OBJECTIVE: This study investigates whether access to the Swedish version of the PTSD Coach affects posttraumatic stress, depressive, and somatic symptoms. In addition, we aim to assess the perceived helpfulness, satisfaction, negative effects, response, and remission related to PTSD Coach. METHODS: Adults who had experienced potentially traumatic events in the past 2 years were randomized (1:1) to have access to PTSD Coach (n=89) or be on the waitlist (n=90). We assessed clinical characteristics at baseline (semistructured interviews and self-rating scales) and after 3 months (self-rating scales). We analyzed the data in R software using linear mixed effects models, chi-square tests, and Fisher exact test. RESULTS: Intention-to-treat analyses indicated that access to PTSD Coach decreased posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms but not somatic symptoms. More participants who had access to PTSD Coach responded with clinically significant improvement and fewer instances of probable PTSD after 3 months compared with waitlist controls. Overall, participants found that PTSD Coach was slightly to moderately helpful and moderately satisfactory. Half of the intervention group (36/71, 51%) reported at least one negative reaction related to using PTSD Coach (eg, disappointment with the app or its results, arousal of stress, or distressing memories). CONCLUSIONS: Using PTSD Coach may trigger symptoms among a few users; however, most of them perceived PTSD Coach as helpful and satisfactory. This study showed that having access to PTSD Coach helped improve psychological trauma-related symptoms. In addition, we have discussed implications for future research and clinical practice. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04094922; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04094922.

The grief and communication family support intervention: Intervention fidelity, participant experiences, and potential outcomes.

This study aimed to evaluate intervention fidelity and explore participants' experiences and potential outcomes after participating in the intervention. Using a pretest post-test pilot study, 10 parentally bereaved families completed the three-session manual-based intervention with a family therapist. Sessions were audio-recorded. Therapists completed an adherence checklist to assess fidelity. Assessments via questionnaires and interviews occurred at one month post-intervention and via questionnaires at baseline and six months post-intervention. This study showed a high level of fidelity. The study shows preliminary evidence of the intervention's capacity to improve communication and relationships in parentally bereaved families.

Sources of social support and its importance for cancer-bereaved spouses and their minor children: A cross-sectional study.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the sources from which bereaved families with minor children reported receiving social support after the death of a parent/partner and which sources they perceived as important. Using an online platform, 23 adolescents, 42 parents, and 27 parent proxies for children aged 4-11 years, completed questionnaires. Family and friends were valued as the most important sources of social support, while social support from societal institutions, such as health care and school, was considered less important, and insufficient.

Outcomes of the grief and communication family support intervention on parent and child psychological health and communication.

Parents and children risk developing psychological health problems following the death of a partner/parent and may need professional support. This study used the reliable change criterion and clinically significant change to examine the outcomes of the Grief and Communication Family Support Intervention, comprising three family meetings with a family therapist, among 10 parents and 14 children, using pre-post outcome scores. The results provided preliminary evidence that the Grief and Communication Family Support Intervention may improve self-esteem and reduce anxiety in some parents and may improve communication and reduce internalizing and externalizing problems in some children.

A third of dying patients do not have end-of-life discussions with a physician: A nationwide registry study.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to explore the proportion of adult patients and next-of-kin who had end-of-life (EOL) discussions and associated factors. METHOD: A retrospective nationwide registry study was reported with data from the Swedish Register of Palliative Care. All patients in Sweden in hospitals, nursing homes, own homes, community, and palliative care units during 2015-2017 and their next-of-kin were included. Data were reported to the register by healthcare staff, based on diseased patients' records regarding their last days of life, and were voluntary. Descriptive statistics illustrated the proportion of patients/next-of-kin who had EOL discussions and logistic regressions were used to examine associated factors. RESULTS: About half of the patients (46%) did have an EOL discussion, but a third (32%) did not. Associated factors of those who did not have an EOL discussion were dementia (48.5%) or stroke (47.5%), older age (38.4%), being female (33.6%), being cared for in a nursing home (41.3%), or hospital (40.3%), having lost decision-making ability months before death (58.9%), and not having a documented decision to shift to EOL care (82.7%). Younger patients diagnosed with cancer and cared for at a palliative unit were more likely to have EOL discussions. The regression analysis showed similar results for next-of-kin. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: The result shows that not all patients with palliative care needs have equal access to EOL discussions, despite efforts at a national level and the recognized benefits of timely communication about the EOL care. Further efforts must be made to achieve EOL discussions for all patients.

End-of-Life-Related Factors Associated with Posttraumatic Stress and Prolonged Grief in Parentally Bereaved Adolescents.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and prolonged grief disorder (PGD) are well-documented in parentally bereaved adolescents. Whether or not the parent's death is perceived as traumatic may be influenced by several end-of-life-related factors. This study aimed to examine the associations between end-of-life-related factors, symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), symptoms of prolonged grief disorder and PGD, and the association between PTSD and PGD. Mann-Whitney U tests and Spearman correlation were used to analyze the relationships between end-of-life-related factors, PTSD, and PGD. Regretting one's decision to be present or not present at the time of death resulted in a significant difference in self-reported scores for PTSD, but not PGD.

Psychological symptoms in widowed parents with minor children, 2-4 years after the loss of a partner to cancer.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to explore psychological symptoms in widowed parents with minor children, 2-4 years after the death of their partner. A second aim was to examine the associations between psychological symptoms and nonmodifiable and modifiable illness and healthcare-related factors. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey study on widowed parents with minor children after the loss of a partner to cancer. In total, 42 parents completed an online questionnaire including instruments for assessing symptoms of anxiety, depression, grief rumination, prolonged grief, and posttraumatic stress. Descriptive statistics, Spearman's correlation coefficients, Mann-Whitney U tests and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to analyze differences in symptomology based on modifiable and nonmodifiable factors. RESULTS: Parents reported moderate-severe symptoms of anxiety, posttraumatic stress, and depression. Reporting having received more information during the partner's illness regarding how the illness could affect the partner's somatic and psychological health and where to turn for support were associated with fewer psychological symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: A substantial proportion of widowed parents with minor children reported a moderate-severe symptom burden regarding depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress, and less so with prolonged grief symptoms. This study also highlighted the value of receiving information from healthcare personnel regarding the somatic and psychological effects of a partner's illness and where widowed parents can turn for support.

Adaptation of a Grief and Communication Family Support Intervention for Parentally Bereaved Families in Sweden.

This article aims to describe the adaptation of the evidence-based Family Bereavement Program to a Swedish context. Empirical support indicating that family communication is a protective factor for parentally bereaved children was used to motivate the focus of the intervention. Modules from the Family Bereavement Program manual were translated, culturally adapted, and modified to fit a family format. The manual for the Grief and Communication Family Support Intervention was pilot-tested with two families, which resulted in minor modifications being made to the manual. Therapists reported that they could follow the manual and adapt it to children's varying ages.

How parents of dependent children reason about their partner's impending death due to cancer.

This paper explores how bereaved parents with dependent children reasoned about their partner's impending death due to cancer. Questionnaires were used to collect data from 42 cancer-bereaved parents of dependent children in Sweden. The results showed that most of the parents had thought, at least once, that death would be best for their partner's own sake. A few parents had also thought that it would be best for everyone if their partner died. Many parents had a wish to keep up hope, no matter what. However, living with a partner with advanced illness and dependent children was described as extremely stressful.

Parents' views on what facilitated or complicated their grief after losing a child to cancer.

OBJECTIVES: The loss of a child is a devastating event, and bereaved parents often suffer intense and long-lasting grief reactions and are at risk for psychological symptoms. More knowledge about how parents cope with grief may improve the support to bereaved parents. This study, therefore, aimed to explore parents' views on what facilitated or complicated their grief coping after losing a child to cancer. METHODS: This study was derived from a nationwide postal survey. Cancer-bereaved parents (n = 161) provided written responses to two open-ended questions: "Is there anything that has helped you cope with your grief after your child's death?" and "Is there anything that made it difficult for you to cope with your grief?" Content analysis was used to analyze the responses. RESULTS: Parents reported that a supportive social network of family and friends, and having remaining children, facilitated their coping with grief. Meeting professional counselors and meeting other bereaved parents, connecting to memories of the deceased child in various contexts, including school and pediatric care settings, were also reported facilitating grief coping. Parents stated that the following experiences had complicated grief coping: additional losses in their family or social network; not being able to share emotions with their partner; when they perceived that friends, relatives, or colleagues lacked empathy or patience; when they felt challenging demands from employers at a too early stage. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: This study contributes to the understanding of parents' grief experiences and what has facilitated or complicated their coping with grief, which can help health care professionals and others improve bereavement support services.

Family Communication and Psychological Health in Children and Adolescents Following a Parent's Death From Cancer.

Parentally bereaved children and adolescents are at risk of developing psychological health problems. Evidence for a correlation between communication and broad measures of psychological health exists in other populations. The aim of this study was to examine associations between family communication and specific aspects of psychological health for children and adolescents following a parent's death from cancer using parent-proxy and adolescent self-reports. Parent-proxy reports for children and adolescents, and adolescent self-reports for Parent-Adolescent Communication, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and Prolonged Grief-13 child were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Spearman's correlation. Parents rated communication as moderate in quality and reported good psychological health for children and adolescents. Adolescent self-reports indicated low-quality communication with their parent and poor psychological health. Significant associations between Parent-Adolescent Communication subscales and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire subscales were found for each group. Prolonged grief was associated with emotional problems but not communication for all three groups.

Bereaved mothers' and fathers' prolonged grief and psychological health 1 to 5 years after loss-A nationwide study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess differences in prolonged grief, depression, posttraumatic stress, and sleep disturbances in bereaved parents across years since loss (1-5 years) and by gender and to assess potential interactive effects of time since loss and gender on bereavement outcomes. METHODS: This study examined symptom levels of prolonged grief disorder, depression, posttraumatic stress, and insomnia in bereaved parents. A sample, including 133 mothers and 92 fathers who had lost a child to cancer 1 to 5 years previously, subdivided to five subsamples, one for each year since loss. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to assess differences in symptom levels, related to years since loss, and gender. RESULTS: Regardless of how many years had passed since the loss, symptom levels of prolonged grief, depression, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and insomnia were elevated in all subsamples. Mothers showed higher symptom levels of prolonged grief, depression, and posttraumatic stress than fathers. However, no significant interaction effects were found between years since loss and gender on any of the symptom levels. CONCLUSIONS: Cancer-bereaved mothers and fathers are vulnerable to prolonged grief and psychological symptoms up to 5 years after the death of their child. Findings highlight that bereaved parents may need long-term support, and the results deserve further attention in research and clinical care.

Spirituality and religious coping are related to cancer-bereaved siblings' long-term grief.

OBJECTIVE: Many bereaved siblings have still not come to terms with their grief many years after the loss, but few studies have focused on what can help. The aims of this study were to identify cancer-bereaved adolescents' and young adults' ways of coping with grief after loss of a sibling, and examine whether these ways of coping were related to their experience of having worked through their grief. METHOD: This nationwide survey of 174 cancer-bereaved siblings (73% participation rate) is based on one open-ended question about coping with grief ("What has helped you to cope with your grief after your sibling's death?") and one closed-ended question about siblings' long-term grief ("Do you think you have worked through your grief over your sibling's death?"). The open-ended question was analyzed with content analysis; descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test were used to examine the relation between type of coping and siblings' long-term grief. RESULT: The siblings described four ways of coping: (1) thinking of their dead brother/sister and feeling and expressing their grief; (2) distracting or occupying themselves; (3) engaging in spiritual and religious beliefs/activities; and (4) waiting for time to pass. One of these categories of coping with grief, namely, engaging in spiritual and religious beliefs and activities, was associated with siblings' experience of having worked through their grief two to nine years after the loss (p = 0.016). SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: Those siblings who had used spirituality, religious beliefs, and activities to cope were more likely to have worked through their grief than those who had not.

Teenagers' reasoning about a parent's recent death in cancer.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to explore how teenagers reason about a parent's recent death and about their life without that parent. METHOD: A total of 10 teenagers (aged 14-19 years, 7 boys and 3 girls) were interviewed twice, 3-12 months after their parent's death. The interviews were carried out individually and as free-ranging conversations. A content analysis with a descriptive and interpretive design was conducted. RESULTS: Importantly, all teenagers appreciated participating in the interviews. Some had not previously talked in such depth about this with anyone, while others had more open communications within their families and with others. Their parent's death was the worst thing that could happen, but they still expressed the feeling that it had been a relief for both the ill parent and themselves. The death had relieved the parent from suffering and a life with severe illness. Many of the teenagers empathized with the surviving parent's grief and worried about him or her as well as the entire home situation. As a consequence, the teenagers did not show their grief, as they did not want to burden the grieving parent. Seeing the parent grieving could lead to feelings of loneliness and hopelessness and that the support they needed was not there for them. Nevertheless, some teenagers could grieve together with the surviving parent in common understanding and with openness. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: A tentative conclusion is that the teenagers who were more likely to talk and grieve together with their surviving parent coped better with their situation than teenagers who did not. Parentally bereaved teenagers tend to take on a responsibility to support the grieving parent, when it is they themselves who need and should receive support.

Alcohol consumption after severe burn: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: The number of patients with alcohol-related burns admitted to burn units has increased. It has been reported previously that alcohol-related burns are an indicator of alcohol dependence, but there are few studies addressing alcohol use several years after burn injury. OBJECTIVE: To investigate alcohol consumption 2-7 years after burn injury and to examine possible contributing factors. METHODS: Consecutive adult patients with burns (n = 67) were included during hospitalization, and an interview was performed at 2-7 (mean = 4.6) years after burn. Data assessed at baseline were injury characteristics, sociodemographic variables, coping, and psychiatric disorders. At follow-up, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test was used to identify at-risk drinking. RESULTS: Overall, 22% of the burns were alcohol-related; however, this was not associated with at-risk drinking at follow-up. Of the former patients with burns, 17 (25%) were identified as having an at-risk drinking pattern at follow-up. One item in the Coping With Burns Questionnaire used in acute care, "I use alcohol, tobacco or other drugs to be able to handle my problems", was the only factor found to predict an at-risk drinking pattern several years after injury. CONCLUSION: There were more at-risk drinkers in this burn population as compared with in the general population. The results indicate that an avoidant coping pattern, including the use of alcohol to handle problems, can be considered a potentially modifiable factor.