Patients’ experiences and expectations of the General Practitioner’s role during bereavement care after losing a loved one: A qualitative study

Abstract

General practitioners (GPs) are well positioned to support patients during their grieving process. This study investigated patients’ experiences and expectations of their GP’s role during bereavement care after losing a loved one. Semi-structured interviews (N = 14) were conducted to gain a deeper insight with the aim to improve the quality of primary bereavement care. Results showed a role for GPs in the assessment of and response to patients’ needs. Patients had limited expectations of their GP but did appreciate it when their GP showed concern about their loss. It is recommended that GPs discuss bereavement care during patient encounters.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all the participating patients.

Authors’ contributions

JVG and MV conducted the interviews and performed the primary data-analysis. SP coached the interviewers in interview-taking. MS, SP, JVG and MV frequently discussed the data-analysis and coding tree. JVG and MV drafted the first version of the manuscript. MS and SP revised it before the whole team further refined the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The datasets used and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. They are stored on a secured drive of the authors’ institution.