Dysfunctional Pandemic Grief Model Among Nursing Professionals Who Experienced Death of Patients

Dysfunctional grief was not addressed adequately during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to develop a dysfunctional pandemic grief model specific to healthcare workers who experienced patient deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted an anonymous online survey among 568 nursing professionals who had experienced a patient's death while working at three tertiary-level hospitals. We further assessed psychological status using the Pandemic Grief Scale (PGS) for Healthcare Workers, Pandemic Grief Risk Factors (PGEF), Utrecht Grief Rumination Scale (UGRS), Grief Support HealthCare Scale (GSHCS), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Stress and Anxiety in Viral Epidemic-9 (SAVE-9). PGS correlated with PGRF, UGRS, GSHCS, PHQ-9, and SAVE-9 (all p < 0.01). Linear regression analysis revealed that PGRF (𝛽=0.44, p < 0.001), UGRS (𝛽=0.24, p < 0.001), GSHCS (𝛽=-0.09, p = 0.004), and PHQ-9 (𝛽=0.23, p < 0.001) expected pandemic dysfunctional grief. Mediation analysis showed that PGRF directly influenced PGS; UGRS and GSHCS positively and negatively mediated the relationship between PGRF and PGS, respectively. The dysfunctional pandemic grief model shows that it is important to address grief risk factors, manage rumination, and provide effective psychological support to healthcare workers.