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. 2021 Dec;35(10):1985-1997.
doi: 10.1177/02692163211043372. Epub 2021 Oct 22.

Support needs and barriers to accessing support: Baseline results of a mixed-methods national survey of people bereaved during the COVID-19 pandemic

Emily Harrop  1 , Silvia Goss  1 , Damian Farnell  2 , Mirella Longo  1 , Anthony Byrne  1 , Kali Barawi  1 , Anna Torrens-Burton  3 , Annmarie Nelson  1 , Kathy Seddon  1 , Linda Machin  4 , Eileen Sutton  5 , Audrey Roulston  6 , Anne Finucane  7 , Alison Penny  8 , Kirsten V Smith  9 , Stephanie Sivell  1 , Lucy E Selman  5
Affiliations

Support needs and barriers to accessing support: Baseline results of a mixed-methods national survey of people bereaved during the COVID-19 pandemic

Emily Harrop et al. Palliat Med. 2021 Dec.

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is a mass bereavement event which has profoundly disrupted grief experiences. Understanding support needs and access to support among people bereaved at this time is crucial to ensuring appropriate bereavement support infrastructure.

Aim: To investigate grief experiences, support needs and use of formal and informal bereavement support among people bereaved during the pandemic.

Design: Baseline results from a longitudinal survey. Support needs and experiences of accessing support are reported using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis of free-text data.

Setting/participants: 711 adults bereaved in the UK between March and December 2020, recruited via media, social media, national associations and community/charitable organisations.

Results: High-level needs for emotional support were identified. Most participants had not sought support from bereavement services (59%, n = 422) or their General-Practitioner (60%, n = 428). Of participants who had sought such support, over half experienced difficulties accessing bereavement services (56%, n = 149)/General-Practitioner support (52%, n = 135). About 51% reported high/severe vulnerability in grief; among these, 74% were not accessing bereavement or mental-health services. Barriers included limited availability, lack of appropriate support, discomfort asking for help and not knowing how to access services. About 39% (n = 279) experienced difficulties getting support from family/friends, including relational challenges, little face-to-face contact and disrupted collective mourning. The perceived uniqueness of pandemic bereavement and wider societal strains exacerbated their isolation.

Conclusions: People bereaved during the pandemic have high levels of support needs alongside difficulties accessing support. We recommend increased provision and tailoring of bereavement services, improved information on support options and social/educational initiatives to bolster informal support and ameliorate isolation.

Keywords: Bereavement; bereavement services; coronavirus infections; grief; pandemics; social support.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of conflicting interests: The author(s) declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: All authors except AP declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article. AP declared a potential financial interest relating to lobbying by the Childhood Bereavement Network and National Bereavement Alliance for additional financial support for the bereavement sector.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Highest level of support accessed by IOV group using three tiers of the Public Health Model. Tier 1 a: Friends and family only; Tier 1 b: Informal and information-based support: GP, helpline, online community support, informal support group, other for example, websites, podcasts, self-help material; Tier 2/3: Formal bereavement service and mental health support: One to one support/counselling, bereavement support group/group counselling, mental health support. >6 weeks; participants who completed questionnaire at least 42 days post-death.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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