Identification of spouses at high risk during bereavement: a preliminary assessment of Parkes and Weiss' Risk Index

The Risk Index developed by Parkes and Weiss (1983) is a brief structured assessment tool for identifying bereaved spouses who may be at high risk for developing complications during bereavement. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the utility of the Risk Index in predicting outcome during the first year of bereavement in spouses of deceased hospice patients. Professional staff at the hospice completed the Risk Index shortly after the spouse died and outcome was then assessed after 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. High-risk bereaved were younger than low-risk bereaved. Number of young children at home, existence of close relationships, and financial status were important predictors of outcome during the first year of bereavement. The findings suggest that the Risk Index may serve as a cost-effective means of assessing risk for complications during the first year of bereavement.