Living beyond the unanticipated sudden death of a partner: A phenomenological study

Omega: Journal of Death and Dying

Volumn 54, Issue 2, 2007, Pages 107-133

  Rodger, Martin L ^a,b   Sherwood, Patricia ^a   O'Connor, Moira ^a   Leslie, Gavin ^a  

^a EDITH COWAN UNIVERSITY   (Australia)

^b NONE   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR; ADULT; ARTICLE; BEREAVEMENT; DAILY LIFE ACTIVITY; FEMALE; GRIEF; HEALTH SERVICE; HUMAN; MALE; MENTAL HEALTH SERVICE; MIDDLE AGED; PSYCHOLOGIC TEST; PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECT; SINGLE PARENT; SOCIAL SUPPORT; SPOUSE; SUDDEN DEATH;

ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING; ADAPTATION, PSYCHOLOGICAL; ADULT; BEREAVEMENT; COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES; DEATH, SUDDEN; FEMALE; GRIEF; HEALTH SERVICES NEEDS AND DEMAND; HUMANS; INTERVIEW, PSYCHOLOGICAL; MALE; MIDDLE AGED; SINGLE PARENT; SOCIAL SUPPORT; SPOUSES;

EID: 34548125722     PISSN: 00302228     EISSN: 15413764     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2190/W423-0132-R010-14J7     Document Type: Article

References (94)

1. Anderson, M. (2000). Death in the family. Retrieved 12 September, 2000, from www.ncl.ac.uk/ncfs/ncfs/document55.
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics. (1997). Life expectancies of Australian men and women. Retrieved 8 August, 2000, from www.abs.gov.au/
3. Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2002). Life expectancies of Australian men and women. Retrieved 20th March, 2004, from www.abs.gov.au/
4. Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2004). Life expectancies of Australian men and women. Retrieved 14th October, 2006, from www.abs.gov.au/
5. Baker, H. (1987). Some thoughts on helping grieving families. Journal of Emergency Nursing, 13(6), 359-362.
6. Bowling, A., & Windsor, J. (1995). Death after widow(er)hood: An analysis of mortality rates up to 13 years after bereavement Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 31(1), 35-49.
7. Brabant, S., Forsyth, C., & Melancon, C. (1992). Grieving men: Thoughts, feelings, and behaviours following the deaths of wives. The Hospice Journal, 8(4), 33-37.
8. Buchanan, H., Geubtner, M., & Snyder, C. (1996). Trauma bereavement program: Review of development and implementation. Critical Care Nursing Quarterly, 19(1), 35-45.
9. Bucholz, J. A. (2002). Homicide survivors - Misunderstood grievers. Amityville, NY: Baywood.
10. Burgess, K. (1992). Supporting bereaved relatives in A&E. Nursing Standard, 6(19), 36-39.
11. Caserta, M., & Lund, D. (1996). Beyond bereavement support group meetings: Exploring outside social contacts among the members. Death Studies, 20(6), 537-556.
12. Chen, J., Bierhals, A., Prigerson, H., Kasl, S., Mazure, C., & Jacobs, S. (1999). Gender differences in the effects of bereavement-related psychological distress in health outcomes. Psychological Medicine, 29(2), 367-380.
13. Chethik, N. (2000). Reaching bereaved men requires innovation. The Forum Newsletter - Association for Death Education and Counselling, 26(5), 4-5.
14. Clark, G. (1993). Personal meanings of grief and bereavement. Unpublished Doctoral Thesis, University of Alberta, Edmonton.
15. Coolican, M., Vassar, E., & Grogan, J. (1989, August). Helping survivors survive. Nursing, 89, 53-57.
16. Costello, G. (1995). After care program volunteer. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 7(3), 529-530.
17. Costello, J., & Kendrick, K. (2000). Grief and older people: The making or breaking of emotional bonds following partner loss in later life. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 32(6), 1374-1382.
18. Daggett, L. (1999). Living with loss: The lived experience of spousal bereavement in men aged 40 to 60. Unpublished dissertation, University of Alabama, Birmingham.
19. Daggett, L. (2002). Living with loss: Middle-aged men face spousal bereavement. Qualitative Health Research, 12(5), 625-639.
20. Davidhizar, R., & Kirk, B. (1993, June 16). Emergency room nurses: Helping families cope with sudden death. The Journal of Practical Nursing, 16, 15-19.
21. Davies, J. (1991). A sudden bereavement. Nursing Times, 87(33), 34-36.
22. Davis, C., & Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2001). Loss and meaning. How do people make sense of loss? American Behavioral Scientist, 44(5), 726-741.
23. Detmer, C., & Lamberti, J. (1991). Family grief. Death Studies, 15(4), 363-374.
24. Devenish, S. (2002). An applied method for undertaking phenomenological explication of interview transcripts. The Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, 2(1), 1-20.
25. Doyle, P. (1980). Grief counselling and sudden death. A manual and guide. Springfield, MA: Charles C Thomas.
26. Duke, S. (1998). An exploration of anticipatory grief: The lived experience of people during their spouses' terminal illness and in bereavement. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 28(4), 829-839.
27. Elliott, J. L. (1999). The death of a parent in childhood: A family account. Illness, Crisis & Loss, 7(4), 360-375.
28. Feinstein, D., & Ramatowski, C. (1995). Staff support. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 7(3), 535-540.
29. Fraser, S., & Atkins, J. (1990). Survivors' recollections of helpful and unhelpful emergency nurse activities surrounding the death of a loved one. Journal of Emergency Nursing, 16(1), 13-16.
30. Genevro, J., Marshall, T., & Miller, T. (2003). Report on bereavement and grief research. Calgary, Canada: Centre for the Advancement of Health.
31. Giguere, B. (2002). Nursing as caring: A model for transforming practice. Nursing Education Perspectives, 23(3), 146.
32. Gilliland, G., & Fleming, S. (1997). A comparison of spousal anticipatory grief and conventional grief. Death Studies, 22, 541-569.
33. Giorgi, A. (2001). A phenomenological analysis of descriptions of conceptions of learning obtained from a phenomenographic perspective. Retrieved 18th September, 2002, from www.ped.gu.se/biorn/phgraph/misc/ constr/giorgi
34. Harte-Barry, M. (1997). "Widows aren't meant to be in their thirties." Bereavement experiences of widows with dependent children. Unpublished Qualitative, The University of Waikato, Waikato, New Zealand.
35. Henschen, K., & McBride, A. (1992). A retrospective study of the effect of an athlete's sudden death on teammates. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 25(3), 217-213.
36. Hogan, N., Greenfield, D., & Schmidt, L. (2001). Development and validation of the Hogan Grief Reaction Checklist. Death Studies, 25(1), 1-32.
37. Hogan, N., Morse, J., & Tason, M. C. (1996). Toward an experiential theory of bereavement. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 31(1), 43-65.
38. Holroyd, C. (2001). Phenomenological research method, design and procedure: A phenomenological investigation of the phenomenon of being-in-community as experienced by two individuals who have participated in a community building workshop. Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, 1(1), 1-12. Retrieved May 25, 2004, from http://www.ipjp.org/april2001/holroyd.pdf.
39. Holstein, J., & Gubrium, J. (Eds.). (1994). Phenomenology, ethnomethodology and interpretive practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishers.
40. Horacek, B. (1995). A heuristic model of grieving after high-grief deaths. Death Studies, 19, 21-31.
41. Hyrkas, K., Kaunonen, M., & Paunonen, M. (1997). Recovering from the death of a spouse. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 25(4), 775-779.
42. Jagger, C., & Sutton, C. (1991). Death after marital bereavement - Is the risk increased? Statistics in Medicine, 10, 395-404.
43. Kaunonen, M., Tarkka, M., Paunonen, M., & Laippala, P. (1999). Grief and social support after the death of a spouse. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 30(6), 1304-1311.
44. Keenan, K. (1995). The role of nursing assessment of traumatic events in sudden injury, illness and death. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 7(3), 483-488.
45. Kiger, A. (1994). Student nurses involvement with death: The image and the experience. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 20, 679-686.
46. Kirschling, J., & McBride, A. (1989). Effects of age and sex on the experience of widowhood. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 11(2), 207-218.
47. Klein, M. (2000). Young-widowsεGroups.com. Retrieved 12th September, 2000, from www.egroups.com/list/young-widows/info.
48. Levy, L. (1991). Anticipatory grief. It's measurement and proposed reconceptualisation. Hospice Journal, 8(4), 1-28.
49. McCutcheon, H., & Pincombe, J. (2001). Intuition: An important tool in the practice of nursing. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 35(3), 342-348.
50. McQuay, J. (1995). Support of families who had a loved one suffer a sudden injury, illness or death. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 7(3), 541-547.
51. Middleton, W., Burnett, P., Raphael, B., & Martinek, N. (1996). The bereavement response: A cluster analysis. British Journal of Psychiatry, 169(2), 167-171.
52. Neimeyer, R. (2000). Grief therapy and research findings in bereavement programs. Death Studies, 24(7), 603-610.
53. Neimeyer, R., Prigerson, H., & Davies, B. (2002). Mourning and meaning. American Behavioral Scientist, 46(2), 235-251.
54. Neria, Y., & Litz, B. (2004). Bereavement by traumatic means: The complex synergy of trauma and grief. Journal of Loss & Trauma, 9(1), 73-87.
55. Paley, J. (1997). Husserl, phenomenology and nursing. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 26(1), 187-193.
56. Parkes, C. (1987). Models of bereavement care. Death Studies, 11(4), 257-261.
57. Patton, M. (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (2nd ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
58. Prigerson, H., Bierhals, A., Kasl, S., Reynolds, C., Shear, K., Day, N., Beery, L., Newsom, J., & Jacobs, S. (1997). Traumatic grief as a risk factor for mental health and physical morbidity. American Journal of Psychiatry, 154(5), 616-623.
59. Prigerson, H., Maciejewski, P., & Rosenheck, R. (2000). Preliminary explorations of the harmful interactive effects of widowhood and marital harmony on health, health service use, and health care costs. Gerontologist, 40(3), 349-357.
60. Quigley, D., & Schatz, M. (1999). Men and women and their responses in spousal bereavement. The Hospice Journal, 14(2), 65-78.
61. Range, L., & Niss, N. (1990). Long-term bereavement from suicide, homicide, accidents and sudden death. Death Studies, 14, 423-433.
62. Remondet, J., & Hansson, R. (1987). Assessing a widows grief: A short index. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 13(4), 31-34.
63. Richmond, B., & Ross, M. (1994). Death of a partner: Responses to AIDS-related bereavement. Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, 12, 143-163.
64. Robinson, J. (1995). Grief responses, coping processes, and social support of widows: Research with Roy's model. Nursing Science Quarterly, 8(4), 158-164.
65. Rosenblat, P. (1994). Family distancing following a fatal farm accident. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 28(3), 183-200.
66. Rubel, B. (1999). Impact of a grief-crisis intervention immediately after a sudden violent death on the survivor's ability to cope. Illness, Crisis & Loss, 7(4) 376-389.
67. Sable, P. (1991). Attachment loss of spouse, and grief in elderly adults. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 23(2), 129-142.
68. Sandelowski, M. (1994). The use of quotes in qualitative research. Research in Nursing and Health, 17, 479-482.
69. Sandelowski, M. (1995). Qualitative analysis: What it is and how it began. Resesrch in Nursing & Health, 18, 371-375.
70. Sanguesa, L. (1995, Summer). No time to say goodbye. Observation, 8, 15-17.
71. Schneider, D., Sledge, P., Shuchter, S., & Zisook, S. (1996). Dating and remarriage over the first two years of widowhood. Annals of Clinical Psychiatry, 8(2), 51-57.
72. Sherwood, P. (2001). Client experience in psychotherapy: What heals and what harms. Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, 1(2), 1-16. Retrieved May 25, 2004, from http://www.ipjp.org/september200l/ sherwood.pdf.
73. Shuchter, R., & Zisook, S. (1993). The course of normal grief. In M. Stroebe, W. Stroebe, & R. Hansson (Eds.), Handbook of bereavement (pp. 23-43). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
74. Silverman, P. (2000). Research, clinical practice, and the human experience: Putting the pieces together. Death Studies, 24(6), 469-478.
75. Smith, B., Mitchell, A., Bruno, A., & Constatino, R. (1995). Exploring widow's experiences after the suicide of their spouse. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing, 33(5), 10-15.
76. Speck, P. (1985). Counselling on death and dying. British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 13(1), 89-97.
77. Stroebe, M. (1998). New directions in bereavement research: Exploration of gender differences. Palliative Medicine, 12, 5-12.
78. Stroebe, M. (2001). Bereavement research and theory: Retrospective and prospective. American Behavioral Scientist, 44(5), 854-865.
79. Stroebe, M., & Schut, H. (1999). The dual process model of coping with bereavement: Rationale and description. Death Studies, 23(3), 197-224.
80. Stroebe, W., Stroebe, M., Abakoumkin, G., & Schut, H. (1996). The role of loneliness and social support in adjustment to loss: A test of attachment versus stress theory. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 70(6), 1241-1249.
81. Sweeting, H., & Gilhooly, M. (1990). Anticipatory grief: A review. Social Science and Medicine, 30(10), 1073-1080.
82. Tatano-Beck, C. (1994). Phenomenology: Its use in nursing research. International Journal of Nursing Study, 31(6), 499-510.
83. Thyre, K. (1995). Never going to be easy: Giving bad news. Nursing Standard, 6(9), 3-8.
84. Tudiver, F., Woods, J., Permaul, A., Hilditch, J., Harmina, J., & Saini, S. (1995, March). Do widowers use the health care system differently? Does intervention make a difference? Canadian Family Physician, 41, 392-400.
85. Tye, C. (1993). Qualified nurses' perception of the needs of suddenly bereaved family members in the accident and emergency department. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 18, 948-956.
86. Wells, P. (1993). Preparing for sudden death: Social work in the emergency room. Social Work, 38(3), 339-342.
87. Whipple, T. (2006). Invisible grief: Addressing the needs of lesbian widows. Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling, 1(1), 115-120.
88. Wolfe, B., & Jordan, J. (2000). Ramblings from the trenches: A clinical perspective on thanatological research. Death Studies, 24(7), 569-584.
89. Wright B. (1991). Sudden death: Intervention skills for caring professions. Edinburgh, UK: Churchill Livingston.
90. Zisook, S., Chentsova-Dutton, Y., & Shuchter, S. (1998). PTSD following bereavement. Annals of Clinical Psychiatry, 10(4), 157-163.
91. Zisook, S., Paulus, M., Shuchter, S., & Judd, L. (1997). The many faces of depression following spousal bereavement. Journal of Affective Disorders, 45(1-2), 85-94.
92. Zisook, S., & Shuchter, S. (1991) Early psychological reaction stress of windowhood. Psychiatry, 54(4), 320-333.
93. Zisook, S., Shuchter, S., Irwin, M., Darko, D., Sledge, P., & Resovsky, K. (1994). Bereavement depression, and immune function. Psychiatry Research, 52(1), 1-10.
94. Zisook, S., Shuchter, S., Sledge, P., Paulus, M., & Judd, L. (1994). The spectrum of depressive phenomena after spousal bereavement. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 55(Suppl), 29-36.