Predictors of bereavement outcomes in families of patients with cancer: a literature review.
The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on predictors of bereavement outcomes in family caregivers of persons who have died of cancer. The literature has been divided into common themes of predictors: characteristics of the deceased person, characteristics of the bereaved person, comparisons of bereaved and non-bereaved persons, well-being of the bereaved person prior to the death, prior interpersonal relationships, characteristics of the illness, characteristics of the caregiving experience, and characteristics of terminal care. A number of recurring patterns point the way to identifying persons who may be at increased risk for poor adjustment during bereavement. It is apparent that men and women express their grief somewhat differently. Whether men or women are at greater risk for poor adjustment, however, remains to be determined. There is some empirical evidence to suggest that lower socioeconomic status and linguistic barriers interfere with adjustment during bereavement. There is a dearth of culturally relevant services to help palliative-care patients and their family members make the required adjustments. The literature makes apparent the need for open awareness of the impending death and for careful and thoughtful planning for where and how the death ought to occur. The regular and frequent presence of professional caregivers contributes to family caregivers' satisfaction with care. Discrepant findings point to the need to explore the issues that underline them. Older bereaved caregivers appear to have some advantages over younger ones, but this finding is not universally found in the results of these studies. Methodological problems include small sample sizes and large variations in the particular bereavement outcomes studied.
Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta, Edmonton.
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D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001601:Bereavement; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012307:Risk Factors; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000523:psychology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome