SSR Seminar Series: Understanding the Influences of Good Death Concept on Bereavement Coping among Bereaved Family Caregivers in Singapore – Positive Meaning Reconstruction in the Dual Process Model

Using the interpretative phenomenological analysis approach, this retrospective qualitative study examined the attributes of a good death for terminally ill patients as perceived by their bereaved family caregivers and discovered the influences on caregivers’ caregiving experiences and subsequent bereavement coping. A purposive sample of 15 bereaved family caregivers, who had lived with and/or cared for their dying spouse or parent, were recruited from a local hospice. All one-to-one interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and entered into NVivo 12 Plus software for thematic analysis. Fourteen subthemes were identified and categorised into four major themes, namely, attributes of a perceived good death, positive caregiving experiences, negative caregiving experiences, and bereavement experiences and coping. Based on one’s good death concept, caregivers made meaning of their caregiving experiences in an iterative manner since the start of their caregiving journey and into bereavement. In turn, caregivers’ perception of a good death for the deceased and meaningful caregiving experiences for themselves led to better coping with bereavement. This study posited reconstruction of positive meaning as an adaptive outcome to successful oscillation between loss-oriented and restoration-oriented grieving processes. These findings suggest practice implications for the entire service continuum from palliative and end-of-life care to bereavement care and support.