Grief reaction model of families who experienced acute bereavement in Japan

The present study clarified the structure of factors that affect grief reactions of families who experienced acute bereavement in critical care settings in Japan. Sixty-four families who experienced acute bereavement answered a questionnaire. The questionnaire included the Miyabayashi Grief Measurement, recognition of bereavement, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and the Tri-Axial Coping Scale. We analyzed the causal structure regarding the relationship of stress recognition, coping, and grief reactions using structural equation modeling. The greatest influence on grief reactions of bereaved families was stress recognition. Factors that influenced stress recognition were subjective degree of sadness, acceptance of bereavement, regret for bereavement, and recognition of a peaceful death. These results show that the quality of end-of-life care in critical care settings is an important factor that affects bereaved families' stress recognition and grief reactions. Nurses and medical staff must provide end-of-life care to help family members accept the death of their loved one and reduce regrets as much as possible.