No abstract

If institutional systems that provide end-of-life care are to survive the demands of managed care, they will need to tie together methods of assessing the needs of the dying, leading to a new understanding of the functioning of a patient's existing helping networks. This paper presents the preliminary findings of a research project conducted at a Midwest hospice. The study utilized a cross sectional correlational survey of patients' needs via the Early Risk and Resiliency Inventory (ERRI), while mapping their helping networks with a Circles of Care Ecomap. It addressed the question, "What is the relationship between the needs of the dying and the formal and informal support provided?" Study findings supported the contention that higher need patients utilized the more expensive institutional services rather than relying on available natural networks; and statistical analysis of the study instrument suggested the creation of a new conceptual domain of psychospiritual need.

The findings clearly illustrate the merit of psychosocial screening of spouses and suggest the possible benefits of screening before the patient's death, using FACES III and the BSI to identify which spouses are at risk for complicated grief reactions.

No abstract

Psychosocial interventions should be based on research which reflects the multidimensionality of psychosocial constructs. This study investigated six categories of social support which were associated with depressive symptomatology in a sample of 531 college students. The Social Provisions Scale was used to measure social support while the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale was used to measure depressive symptomatology. Standard multiple regression analysis was used to analyze the variance contributed by each of the six categories of social support found on the Social Provisions Scale to depressive symptomatology. Specifically, the following categories of social support were significantly associated with depressive symptomatology: Reassurance of Worth (for male and female respondents) and Attachment (for females only). Implications for practice and research are discussed.