Article: The dying parent and dependent children: a nationwide survey of hospice and community palliative care services

This study was carried out to establish the bereavement support provided by UK hospices to families with dependent children before and after a parent's death.  197 hospices were invited to complete a web based survey.  130 hospices responded.  Most types of support were provided after, rather than before the death of a parent, with 22% of hospices reporting no formal processes for asking or documenting dependent children.  Volunteers were an underused resource before the death of a parent.  Four themes characterised the challenges involved:  for families these were emotional, practical and social difficulties, and for hospices, funding/resources and staff training and numbers.  The study identified a number of areas for development.

Cockle-Hearne, J. 2020.  The dying parent and dependent children: a nationwide survey of hospice and community palliative care services.  BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care. epub ahead of print. March 9, 2020.

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Recording hospice patients life stories

Since November 2017, St Leonard’s has been working in partnership with the Hospice Biographers charity and in October 2019 announced that the service is officially up and running. A range of St Leonard’s staff and two volunteers undertook specialist training in June this year to enable them to work with patients to prepare and record their biography.
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Article: Parental life-limiting illness: what do we tell children

This UK study aims to increase our understanding of children's experiences when a parent has a life-limiting illness.  Interviews were carried out with 7 bereaved children exploring the experience of the support they received along with interviews with 16 healthcare professionals to gain their perspective of the support offered to the children.  The findings showed the children need open, clear and age appropriate conversations with their parents.  Parents often found this difficult and looked at healthcare professionals for support and guidance, however healthcare professionals didn't always feel able to offer support. The role of healthcare professionals, training and role in this process is discussed further

Fearnley, F. & Boland, J. W. 2019. Parental life-limiting illness: what do we tell children.  Healthcare, 7 (47) online

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Article: End of life Doulas - what we can offer at the most difficult time of life

The end of life Doula movement is relatively new.  Following on from birth doula's that were established about a decade ago to provide support and guidance to mothers, and mothers-to-be, end of life doula's provide practical and emotional support for people who are dying and the families they leave behind.  This article written by Anna Webb, an end of life doula discusses her work.

Webb, A. 2018.  End of life Doulas - what we can offer at the most difficult time of life.  European Journal of Palliative Medicine, 25 (2) p 64-67.

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Article: Psychological ideas in palliative care: distress, adjustment and coping

There is a growing recognition in the palliative care community of the emotional and psychological needs of patients - and their carers - as they reach the end of life.  But not every patient needs, wants or has access to formal contact with a psychologist.  Written by a clinical psychologist at Marie Curie Hospices, the article summaries the concepts of distress, adjustment and coping.   She lists a number of questions that are useful to ask to promote helpful discussions to gauge what support someone might need.

Strachan, J. 2018.  Psychological ideas in palliative care: distress, adjustment and coping.  European Journal of Palliative Care, 25 (1) p 26 - 30.

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