Literature Review

Mourning a former spouse: Disenfranchised grief AfterTalk; by Dr. Robert Neimeyer; 2/16/26 Dear Dr. Neimeyer, ... Upon hearing that my ex died of cancer last February, I reacted viscerally which surprised my husband. I had to handle some of my ex’s legal affairs as he never remarried. Occasionally since then, I get flooded with memories of him and the good times we shared. It’s almost haunting. I am saddened he is missing the wonderful events in our children’s’ lives. Do people mourn their divorced spouses years after remarriage?  ... CarlaDear Carla, ... [Read Dr. Neimeyer's response]

Presence experiences after loss: Prevalence and relational meaning in a diverse urban sampleOmega; Claire White, Anna Mathiassen, Ronald Fischer; 1/26Presence experiences-the sense that a significant person who has died is nearby or perceptible-are common after bereavement but remain underexamined in grief research. This study ... [revealed that] ... over two-thirds of participants reported having ever experienced a presence, with nearly half reporting at least one occurrence in the past two weeks. These experiences were most commonly reported as a general feeling of presence, rated as both significant and welcome. Participants frequently interpreted encounters as meaningful attempts at contact and preferred disclosing these experiences to close social connections rather than institutional figures. These findings highlight presence experiences as common, relationally shaped, and culturally interpreted aspects of bereavement.

Experiencing grief this Valentine's Day? VITAS® Healthcare launches Valentine Helpline in Florida PR Newswire, Miramar, FL; by VITAS Healthcare; 2/10/26 As Valentine's Day approaches, a time often associated with love and connection, many people experience heightened feelings of grief, loneliness or emotional strain after the loss of a loved one or while anticipating an impending loss. To support those navigating these complex emotions, VITAS Healthcare will host a Valentine Helpline on Saturday, Feb. 14, offering free, confidential grief support to Florida residents.

Sheinelle Jones honors nurses who cared for her late husbandTODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle; YouTube segment from tv show; 2/4/26 TODAY's Sheinelle Jones pays special tribute to the nurses and caretakers who looked after her husband Uche Ojeh while in hospice and not only made the time he had left more comfortable, but also supported her and the whole family during their most difficult moments. "The only reason I even have the strength to talk about it, is because I believe that they're our heroes. They deserve all the love and attention we can give them," she says. Then, the care team, Jazzie Stickle, Denise James Wright, Nykyra Owens, Chanel Duff and Jessica Goldstein, get a special surprise.Editor's Note: This segment on TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle honored Uche's birthday, the first birthday Sheinelle and her family are experiencing since his death from brain cancer in May 2025. Hudson Valley Hospice provided hospice care, and beautifully represented the best of hospice care's philosophy and care. In addition to nurses and aides, Sheinelle especially thanked Uche's speech pathologist who helped him voice "I love you." I invite you to watch this and be inspired:  Sheinelle Jones' late husband Uche relearned to say 'I love you' in hospice. And she has the video.

Fly fishing support group provides new angle on grief processing: The grieving can find peace in the rhythm of fishingTimes Courier, Ellijay, GA; by Jackson Elliott; 1/28/26 Few people understand grief like a hospice chaplain. “I’ve experienced about 5,000 deaths,” former hospice chaplain Rick Gillert said. “And I’ve helped those families and patients through the grieving process." “‘I had this idea in the back of my head of combining professional grief care with fly fishing,” he said. During his time as a hospice chaplain, he would often seek peace from the difficulty of the work by going fishing the next day. “I can almost imagine my anxieties, my worries as leaves falling on the water and washing away,” Gillert said. In his program, clients join a group and go through a 10-week course on fly fishing, processing grief and coping skills.

Sanofi Collective - Foundation S stands behind transformative children's palliative care project in Kenya Global Treehouse Foundation; Press Release; 1/27/26 A significant grant from the Foundation S - the Sanofi Collective will enable a transformative three-year project delivering comprehensive grief and bereavement care to families affected by childhood cancer in Kenya. This is about more than funding: it’s about ensuring families are seen, supported and not left to navigate their most challenging moments alone. Foundation S’s investment is a significant milestone in integrating grief and social-emotional support into healthcare systems - an area too often overlooked, yet essential to the dignity and well-being of children and those who love them.

Gerald’s Law reintroduced in Congress to permanently protect veterans’ burial benefits National Alliance for Care at Home, Alexandria, VA and Washington, DC; Press Release; 1/22/26 Representatives Bergman (R-MI) and Budzinski (D-IL) formally reintroduced Gerald’s Law as a standalone bill to permanently protect burial benefits for veterans who receive Veterans Affairs (VA) furnished hospice care outside of a VA facility. The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) applauds this bi-partisan effort to close a critical gap in benefits impacting seriously-ill veterans and their families. 

Limited English proficiency and its association with quality of care and bereavement at the end of lifeAmerican Journal of Hospice & Palliative Medicine; by Maxwell D. Chen, Joan M. Teno; 12/25Of 17.1 million deaths, 5.4% occurred in Hispanic decedents, compared to 3.0% among non-Hispanics ... The strongest disparity was a 12.9-point lower adjusted quality-of-care rating for Hispanic decedents with LEP [limited English proficiency] ...  Respondents of Hispanic decedents with LEP reported trends of higher unmet needs for dyspnea palliation and receipt of goal concordant care. Conclusion: LEP is prevalent in Hispanic decedents, with those with LEP reporting lower ratings of the quality of care compared to non-Hispanics without LEP.

Nurse Honor Guard provides final salute to health care heroes Valley News Live; by Meredith Anderson; 1/16/26 Honor guard ceremonies, which are traditionally reserved for funerals held for military veterans, police officers and firefighters, are becoming more common for another group of frontline workers: nurses. The Georgia Nurse Honor Guard provides tributes to nurses who have died or are in hospice care, offering families a formal recognition of their loved one’s service to the community.

The long quiet of Karen Andrews 15 - Utah's Art Magazine, by Shawn Rossiter; 1/14/25 When Alli Harbertson first walked into the Andrews home, it was the paintings that stopped her. “They’re everywhere,” Harbertson recalls. The living room—where Karen Andrews’ hospital bed had been placed—was filled with artwork, paintings covering the walls and leaning against furniture while ceramics, blankets and small sculptures covered coffee tables, bureaus and dressers. ... [After Karen's death,] Ron Andrews did not know what to do with the more than 130 painting, but he knew what his wife had asked of him. “She was so clear,” Harbertson says. “She said, ‘I made my mark. This is the mark I made—my paintings. Don’t let them go to the DI.’” ...

West Michigan nonprofit celebrates 30 years of service, debuts new grief program MLive, Byron Center, MI; by Skyla Jewell-Hammie; 1/8/26 Faith Hospice, one of West Michigan’s largest nonprofit hospices, celebrated three decades of service with the launch of a new grief support program. The new program, “Real Grief,” is designed to address the needs of those experiencing unexpected, unexplained loss and unrelenting grief. "It’s a starting point for those struggling to process their loss,” said Janet Jaymin, M.A., LPC, director of integrative support services. “We’ve created a community where people can connect with others who understand what they’re going through.”

Together we remember: Using topic modeling and semantic networks to study obituaries and collective memories of contemporary United States Omega - Journal of Death and Dying; Haojian Li, Chengfang Wang, and Ping Hu; 12/6/25 Obituaries have long served as an important source in recording memories and social values in the United States. However, prior research has focused primarily on celebrities or specific groups, often overlooking the narratives of ordinary citizens and neglecting broader discussions of their collective memories. This study addresses these gaps by applying large-scale data analysis and computational methods. ... Overall, this study contributes new insights to obituary research and introduces a novel framework for examining collective memory through large-scale commemorative texts.

323.3: What happens after the gift? Insights from organ procurement organizations on strengthening aftercare in the United StatesTransplantation; by Levan, Macey; Akhtar, Jasmine; Sidoti, Carolyn; Kaplow, Katya; Klitenic, Samantha; Flower, Tessa; Yusef, Bola; Vanterpool, Karen; Parent, Brendan; Koons, Brittany; 12/25Each of the 55 U.S. organ procurement organizations (OPOs) is responsible for obtaining authorization for donation and supporting donor families through the donation process. While federal regulations mandate certain responsibilities related to authorization and coordination, there is no regulatory requirement that OPOs provide services to families after donation. Nonetheless, most OPOs have developed “aftercare” programs, which historically have focused on honoring loved ones, commemorating donation, and offering limited grief-related support. Facilitators of meaningful aftercare included peer connection efforts, standardized data processes, and tailoring services to diverse family needs. However, the structure, scope, and intensity of these programs vary widely, and there has been little national attention to standardizing or modernizing aftercare efforts. Common barriers to effective aftercare included limited access to mental health resources, low survey response rates, insufficient staffing or funding, and fragmentation between initial and long-term support teams.