Evaluation of the Bereavement Risk Index (BRI): a community hospice care protocol

Abstract

the modified 4-item BRI demonstrated acceptable reliability and validity and was brief and simple to use. Nurses were able to use the instrument with minimal training and were able to adhere to a matched bereavement support protocol.

Bereavement Services Offered in Adult Intensive Care Units in the United States

“…Because death in the ICU has been associated with a higher burden of psychological symptoms among bereaved family members, 6,7,[46][47][48] researchers recommend use of a reliable and valid bereavement risk assessment tool. 49,50 Use of such a tool can help to identify family members at higher risk for complicated bereavement and help to develop beneficial interventions. Subsequently, intervening for at-risk family members may save valuable money and time and is also consistent with recommendations in palliative care guidelines.…”

The Psychosocial Context of Bereavement for Older Women Who Were Caregivers for a Spouse With Advanced Cancer

“…A death from cancer often occurs after an intense, challenging trajectory of decline, with difficult-to-manage symptoms and obvious declines in physical functioning (Lunney, Lynn, Foley, Lipson, & Guralnik, 2003), which may have a distinctive impact on bereavement. Bereaved family caregivers of cancer patients describe their bereavement experience of overwhelming emotions and a lack of support (Grbich, Parker, & Maddocks, 2001;Hudson, 2006;Kristjanson, Cousins, Smith, & Lewin, 2005;McLaughlin, Sullivan, & Hasson, 2007). Depression (Wyatt, Friedman, Given, & Given, 1999), loss of appetite (Brazil et al, 2003), sleep problems (Carter, 2005), poor health (Kristjanson et al, 2005), distressing grief over an unpredictable length of time (Chentsova-Dutton et al, 2002), and higher rates of death during bereavement (Christakis & Iwashyna, 2003) have been reported in studies with bereaved caregivers of cancer patients.…”

The PEACE Project Review of Clinical Instruments for Hospice and Palliative Care

“…Future clinical trials should select reliable and valid instruments for outcome measures and generate greater evidence that these instruments are responsive indicators of improved palliative care. As hospice and 14 Bjorner et al 13 Ford et al 14 Kaasa et al 15,16 Stromgren et al 17 Family Evaluation of Hospice Care (FEHC) 13 Teno et al 18 Connor et al 19,20 Functional Assessment of Cancer Treatment (FACT) 15 Cella et al 21 26 Steele et al 27 Williams et al 28 Palliative Care Outcomes Scale (POS) 13 Hearn and Higginson 29 16 Bruera et al 43 Modonesi et al 44 Tierney et al 45 15 Alexopoulos et al 54 Kurlowicz et al 55 PRIME-MD/PHQ-9 13 Kroenke et al 56 Lowe et al 57 Robinson and Crawford 58 Social aspects of care Bereavement Risk Index (BRI) 14 Beckwith et al 59 Kristjanson et al 60 Robinson and Crawford 61 Duke-UNC Social Support Scale 14 Broadhead et al 62 Herndon et al 63 Family Appraisal of Caregiving Questionnaire (FACQ) 14 Cooper et al 64 14 Anderson et al 76 Head et al 77 Olajide et al 78 palliative care organizations thoughtfully adopt patient-level instruments, they will enhance the capacity for quality measurement and quality improvement.…”