A comparison of the grieving process between hospice and non-hospice primary caregivers
Date
1988
Authors
Boulanger, Gail
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Abstract
Forty-one men and women between the ages of 28 and 88 who had lost a close relative to cancer in the previous 13 to 26 month period were interviewed. They represented 22 caregivers involved with a hospice program before and after death of their relative and 19 caregivers who had no such involvement. Two questionnaires, the Texas Revised Inventory of Grief and the Modified Bereavement Questionnaire, were administered to each subject. Scores for members of the two groups were compared using Chi Square and Student's t-test to determine significant differences. Responses were categorized into grief reactions, factors affecting bereavement and manifestations of grief. Hospice and non-hospice subjects showed more similarities than differences in all response categories. They were about equally distributed among the four grief reactions, absent, resolved, delayed and prolonged. Four of the 19 factors affecting bereavement showed significant differences. These occurred in the age of the subjects, where the patients' died, who helped most during bereavement and discussion of funeral arrangements. of the 29 manifestations of grief showed significant differences. Hospice subjects were far more likely to "still feel the need to cry for the person who died" and have difficulty "getting along with certain people after the death" than non-hospice subjects. However, non-hospice subjects were more likely to " have difficulty sleeping after this person died". The study did not find significant differences between the groups in the use of alcohol, pills, weight change, social withdrawal, anger or irritability. The conclusion was drawn that although there are significant differences in some areas, overall it has not been shown that involvement with a hospice program is associated with a reduction in the nature and extent of grieving symptoms . The reasons for these findings and their implications are discussed and suggestions are offered for the direction of further research.