Interim findings of a survey of people bereaved in the UK since March, show the difficulties and distress experienced by those who have lost a loved one, both prior to the death and in their grief.
In the first UK-wide survey exploring bereavement experiences and support needs, bereaved people described a lack of support following a loved one’s death: 45 per cent said they weren’t contacted by the hospital or care provider following the bereavement, while 51 per cent were not provided with any information about bereavement support.
One in four participants reported feeling uncomfortable accessing support from bereavement services, while 56 per cent of people who tried to access bereavement services had experienced difficulties.
Researchers at Cardiff University and the University of Bristol, including a team from the Marie Curie Palliative Care Research Centre, are conducting the research to give voice to the experiences of people bereaved in the UK of any cause since 16 March. The team has released findings from the first 532 respondents to the survey, which remains open until December 31.
Compared with other causes of death, COVID-19 deaths were significantly associated with higher levels of problems related to end of life and bereavement experiences, except for restricted funeral arrangements, which affected almost all respondents .
70 per cent of bereaved people whose loved one died of a confirmed COVID-19 infection had limited contact with them in the last days of life; 85 per cent were unable to say goodbye as they would have liked; 75 per cent experienced social isolation and loneliness.
Dr Emily Harrop, from the Marie Curie Palliative Care Research Centre based at Cardiff University, said: “The survey results so far show the exceptional challenges of pandemic bereavement in terms of difficult experiences at the end of life, restricted funerals and social isolation. Alongside these difficulties and relatively high levels of needs, bereaved people also report problems accessing support from friends and family and bereavement services. It is crucial that policy makers and those providing care and support to patients make changes to better support family members and close friends before and after a death.”
