Long-term bereavement outcomes in family members of those who died in acute care hospitals before and during the first wave of COVID-19: A cohort study.
Palliat Med
; 38(2): 264-271, 2024 Feb.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38229211
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Severe grief is highly distressing and prevalent up to 1 year post-death among people bereaved during the first wave of COVID-19, but no study has assessed changes in grief severity beyond this timeframe.AIM:
Understand the trajectory of grief during the pandemic by reassessing grief symptoms in our original cohort 12-18 months post-death.DESIGN:
Prospective matched cohort study. SETTINGS/PARTICIPANTS:
Family members of decedents who died in an acute care hospital between November 1, 2019 and August 31, 2020 in Ottawa, Canada. Family members of patients who died of COVID (COVID +ve) were matched 21 with those who died of non-COVID illness (COVID -ve) during pandemic wave 1 or immediately prior to its onset (pre-COVID). Grief was assessed using the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG).RESULTS:
Follow-up assessment was completed by 92% (111/121) of family members in the initial cohort. Mean ICG score on the 12-18-month assessment was 19.9 (SD = 11.8), and severe grief (ICG > 25) was present in 28.8% of participants. One-third (33.3%) had either a persistently high (>25) or worsening ICG score (⩾4-point increase between assessments). Using a modified Poisson regression analysis, persistently high or worsening ICG scores were associated with endotracheal intubation in the deceased, but not cause of death (COVID +ve, COVID -ve, pre-COVID) or physical presence of the family member in the final 48 h of life.CONCLUSIONS:
Severe grief is a substantial source of psychological morbidity in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, persisting more than a year post-death. Our findings highlight an acute need for effective and scalable means of addressing severe grief.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Aflicción
/
COVID-19
Tipo de estudio:
Etiology_studies
/
Incidence_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Palliat Med
Asunto de la revista:
SERVICOS DE SAUDE
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Canadá