Literature Review

Children experiencing grief can build coping skills with library storytime The Mountaineer, Waynesville, NC; by Jennifer Stuart; 7/13/24 Seasons of Grief Storytime will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 21, at the Canton Branch of the Haywood County Public Library. This is a story time that aims to reach out to children experiencing grief, being held in partnership with Haywood Hospice and Palliative Care. The group will read a story and create a personalized keepsake. It is a program ideal for ages 5-10. The program is free, but registration is required.Editor's Note: This simple, meaningful support for children can be replicated easily with other local libraries, schools, community/faith groups. 

Erin and Travis Jean’s son, Felix, died in infancy from a rare skin disorder. Here’s what they’d like other families to know about losing a child. The Boston Globe; by Kara Baskin; 7/12/24 In March 2022, Erin and Travis Jean’s son, Felix, died at two-and-a-half months old from complications associated with epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a rare genetic skin disorder that causes severe peeling and blisters. He was cared for in the NICU at Mass General Hospital before spending his final days at home. ...

Supporting the grieving child and family: Clinical reportAmerican Academy of Pediatrics; by David J. Schonfeld, MD, FAAP; Thomas Demaria, PhD; Arwa Nasir, MBBS, MSc, MPH, FAAP; Sairam Kumar, MD, FAAP; Committee on Pyschosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health; Council on Children and Disasters; 6/17/24At some point in their childhood, the majority of children will experience the death of a close family member or friend. Approximately 1 in 20 children in the United States experiences the death of a parent by the age of 16. ... The death of someone close to a child often has a profound and lifelong effect on the child and results in a range of both short- and long-term reactions. ... This clinical report offers practical suggestions on how to talk with grieving children to help them better understand what has happened and its implications. An understanding of guilt, shame, and other common reactions as well as an appreciation of the role of secondary losses and the unique challenges facing children in communities characterized by chronic trauma and cumulative loss will help the [healthcare professional] to address factors that may impair children’s adjustment and to identify complicated mourning and situations when professional counseling is indicated. Advice on how to support children’s participation in funerals and other memorial services and to anticipate and address grief triggers and anniversary reactions is provided. ...Editor's Note: This significant article can be downloaded and shared with your organization's clinicians. For additional, ongoing resources, explore the National Alliance for Children's Grief. If your hospice provides specialized children's grief services, are they listed on the NACG's "Find a Support Center or Camp Near You" search engine? Click here to add or update your listing.

Blue Ridge Hospice receives research grant for grief game The Winchester Star; by Star Staff; 7/5/24 Blue Ridge Hospice has been awarded a two-year, $340,000 research grant from the New York Life Foundation to study the effectiveness of its Adventures Through Grief program for grieving adolescents and young adults. The program utilizes a custom tabletop role-playing game (RPG) similar to Dungeons and Dragons to help young people work their way through bereavement. According to a media release from Winchester-based Blue Ridge Hospice, the RPG is based on a therapeutic method developed by Game to Grow, a not-for-profit organization that uses table-top games for therapeutic, educational and community growth. Blue Ridge Hospice, using a $30,000 grant awarded by the New York Life Foundation in 2022, customized its game to specifically address grief.

How Hospice of the Chesapeake is innovating bereavement care, family support Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 7/4/24 Maryland-based Hospice of the Chesapeake has been pursuing innovation in its bereavement and caregiver support programs. The nonprofit hospice and palliative care provider offers grief care to its entire community regardless of whether a family member was one of their patients. Out-of-pocket payments for those services are on a sliding scale. To expand its reach, Hospice of the Chesapeake works with organizations like schools, senior living communities and other community partners, according to Faith Fitzgerald, director of community support programs for the hospice.

Grief care efforts should include settings outside of hospice, provider group say McKnights Senior Living; by Kimberly Bonvissuto; 7/3/24 If standards are developed for high-quality bereavement and grief care, they must apply to settings outside of traditional hospice care, such as affordable senior housing, where there is a “critical lack” of mental health services. That’s according to LeadingAge, which submitted comments last week to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality on a draft report from a research project that will inform an independent panel that will develop standards for high-quality bereavement and grief care. Katy Barnett, LeadingAge director of home care and hospice operations and policy, highlighted the need for cross-continuum grief and bereavement assessments, interventions and resources, including in settings outside of traditional hospice care, such as affordable senior housing.

Anatomy of hospice grief camps for children Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 6/20/24 Training staff and volunteers to provide developmentally-appropriate grief support is among the key parts of operating summer camp programs for children and adolescents suffering a recent loss. Whether rolling out summer grief camps for the first time or innovating these programs throughout the course of several decades, hospices need a firm grasp around the different emotional and cognitive needs of pediatric populations coping with the death of a loved one, according to Alissa Drescher, senior director of mission-based services at Alive Hospice. With a greater understanding of how children process death, hospices can ensure staff and volunteers are well-equipped to support their evolving needs as they grow, Drescher said. [Click on the title's link to continue reading, particularly "Common threads among children's grief programs."]

When your parents die: Becoming an adult orphan The Montecito Journal; by Deann Zampelli; 6/18/24 Shortly after I got married, my 64-year-old mother lost her battle with breast cancer. Seven years later my father joined her. The loss isn’t any less painful just because you are a grown-up. ... Many don’t realize that grief isn’t linear. We don’t go through a neat little phase, checking off each stage as we complete it. The famous (and somewhat debunked) five stages of grief introduced by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross in the 1960s (Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance) were from a study she did on the emotional states of patients who were dying. It was their stages she was referencing, not ours. ... I came to a frightening realization. ...  It suddenly dawned on me that my siblings and I were next in line to kick it. [Click on the title's link to continue reading.]Editor's Note: While serving in your hospice leadership roles, you experience the ongoing aging, changes and likely even deaths of your own family members, friends, and mentors. Do you, your hospice communications, and/or your grief services rely on the outdated "Stages of Grief" model? These "stages" opened the door in the 1960's for talking about death and dying, but became overpopularizd for surviving and healing after the loss. These have been replaced with extensive bereavement/loss/grief research, clinical best practices, and more. For expert information, resources, and bereavement professionals, examine www.adec.org,  the Association for Death Education and Counseling. 

Better bereavement and palliative care priorities are needed internationally ONS Voice - Oncology Nursing Society; by Elisa Becze, BA, ELS; 6/7/24 Palliative and bereavement care should be a health policy priority, an international team of public health scientists reported in Lancet Public Health. They called for interprofessional health workers, organizations, and systems to “shift bereavement care from an afterthought to a public health priority.” The authors cited evidence that bereaved individuals are at increased risk for numerous adverse outcomes, including prolonged grief disorder, mood and anxiety disorders, existential distress, decreased work productivity, adverse health behaviors, cancer, heart disease, suicide, and death. They added that the burden is particularly high for vulnerable groups, including those living in communities with limited resources. Healthcare professionals’ barriers to providing bereavement care are similar to those for palliative care, they said, including:

Hosparus Health opens new multimillion dollar St. Matthews grief centerLouisville Business Journal; by Zak Owens; 5/23/24Hosparus Heallth unveils $4 million grief center on its St. Matthews campus.Note: May require subscription to access entire article.

From caregiving to mourning: Navigating the end of the road as a family caregiver The San Diego Union-Tribune; by Lauren J. Mapp; 5/21/24 ... Losing a loved one is universally challenging, but for family caregivers who dedicated themselves to their care, the loss can be especially complicated. When a loved one dies, family caregivers often find themselves grappling with a whirlwind of emotions, from sorrow and grief to relief and sometimes guilt. This emotional roller coaster is compounded by the physical and emotional toll of providing round-the-clock care. ... A significant aspect of the grieving process for family caregivers is the transition from the role of caregiver to that of mourner. This shift can be jarring for many, as their identity may have been closely tied to their caregiving responsibilities. ... Editor's Note: For 24/7 online education for family caregivers throughout their trajectory of serious illness thorhrough hospice care and their bereavement journey, visit our sponsor Composing Life Out of Loss's Video Libraries. 

“Mental wellbeing is as important as physical wellbeing – both are interconnected” Marie Curie Hospice; by Anne Finucane, Marie Curie Senior Research Fellow, and David Gillanders, Senior Lecturer, Clinical Psychology, The University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom; 5/13/24 At least one in every four people living with a terminal diagnosis will experience depression, anxiety, adjustment disorder or low mood. Many more will experience distress because of deteriorating health and related uncertainty. Feelings of hopelessness, discouragement and even a desire for hastened death can occur. People have reported that psychological support helps them develop better coping strategies, helps them be more open to their situation and improves communication with their families and those involved in their care.Editor's Note: Executive leaders, what value do you give to your interdisciplinary team members and their contributions to patients' mental/emotional care? What advocacy, support and recognition do you have for your social workers, chaplains, counselors? What mental wellbeing measures do your employees experiences throughout your organization--and more directly--from your leadership with them? Perhaps it's time to "take the pulse" of your culture's mental wellbeing.

HopeWest selected as Childhood Bereavement ChangemakerHigh Country Spotlight; Press Release; 5/9/24 In partnership with Colorado-based Judi’s House/JAG Institute HopeWest is one of 11 grief-centered organizations selected by Judi’s House/JAG Institute to participate in the 2024 Childhood Bereavement Changemaker program to build capacity for data collection and program evaluation through a series of trainings, workshops, and collaborative learning sessions. Over the course of a year, Changemakers will receive guidance and practical recommendations to address data and evaluation needs that can inform strategic planning, support funding opportunities, and enhance the overall impact organizations like HopeWest have on the 96,000 Colorado children estimated to experience the death of a parent or sibling by age 18.