Dataset Information

Communication About Dying, Death, and Bereavement: A Systematic Review of Children's Literature.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Children's books have the potential to facilitate communication about death for children living with a serious illness and for children coping with the death of a loved one.

Objectives

This study examines the content of children's literature relevant to the topic of dying and death and identifies books providers can share with children and their families.

Design

A search of children's literature was conducted using four electronic databases and one additional search engine using the word "Death" or "Dying." Storybooks about dying, death, and bereavement published in English, French, or Spanish between 1995 and 2015 were included.

Measurements

Each book underwent content analysis by at least two independent reviewers. Strict PRISMA standard was followed. Full protocol is available as PROSPERO #CRD42016042129.

Results

Two hundred ten books met inclusion criteria. The dying subject was primarily a grandparent (n?=?78) or pet (n?=?44). Books on the experience of a child dying were scarce (n?=?5). The word death or dying was used in 75% of the books (n?=?158), while others utilized euphemisms. The majority of books featured animals (n?=?40) or Caucasian subjects (n?=?122) and included spiritual elements such as heaven (n?=?122). Less than one-quarter of the books included tools for readers to address the topic of death.

Conclusions

Storybooks can be a helpful tool to introduce communication about dying and death with children. Gaps exist in current children's literature to effectively enable children to reflect on their own dying process. A general summary of available books is provided to assist those caring for children and families facing end-of-life issues.

SUBMITTER: Arruda-Colli MNF

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5704745 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Communication About Dying, Death, and Bereavement: A Systematic Review of Children's Literature.

Arruda-Colli Marina N F MNF Weaver Meaghann S MS Wiener Lori L

Journal of palliative medicine 20170327 5

<h4>Background</h4>Children's books have the potential to facilitate communication about death for children living with a serious illness and for children coping with the death of a loved one.<h4>Objectives</h4>This study examines the content of children's literature relevant to the topic of dying and death and identifies books providers can share with children and their families.<h4>Design</h4>A search of children's literature was conducted using four electronic databases and one additional sea ...[more]

PMID: 28346862

Similar Datasets

Project description:IntroductionMeasuring the quality of care at the end of life and/or the quality of dying and death can be challenging. Some measurement tools seek to assess the quality of care immediately prior to death; others retrospectively assess, following death, the quality of end-of-life care. The comparative evaluation of the properties and application of the various instruments has been limited.ObjectiveThis systematic review identified and critically appraised the psychometric properties and applicability of tools used after death.MethodWe conducted a systematic review according to PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines by systematically searching MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycINFO for relevant studies. We then appraised the psychometric properties and the quality of reporting of the psychometric properties of the identified tools using the COSMIN (Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement Instruments) checklist. The protocol of this systematic review has been registered on PROSPERO (CRD42016047296).ResultsThe search identified 4751 studies. Of these, 33 met the inclusion criteria, reporting on the psychometric properties of 67 tools. These tools measured quality of care at the end of life (n = 35), quality of dying and death (n = 22), or both quality of care at the end of life and dying and death (n = 10). Most tools were completed by family carers (n = 57), with some also completed by healthcare professionals (HCPs) (n = 2) or just HCPs (n = 8). No single tool was found to be adequate across all the psychometric properties assessed. Two quality of care at the end of life tools-Care of the Dying Evaluation and Satisfaction with Care at the End of Life in Dementia-had strong psychometric properties in most respects. Two tools assessing quality of dying and death-the Quality of Dying and Death and the newly developed Staff Perception of End of Life Experience-had limited to moderate evidence of good psychometric properties. Two tools assessing both quality of care and quality of dying and death-the Quality Of Dying in Long-Term Care for cognitively intact populations and Good Death Inventory (Korean version)-had the best psychometric properties.ConclusionFour tools demonstrated some promise, but no single tool was consistent across all psychometric properties assessed. All tools identified would benefit from further psychometric testing.

Dataset Information

Communication About Dying, Death, and Bereavement: A Systematic Review of Children's Literature.

Background

Objectives

Design

Measurements

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Communication About Dying, Death, and Bereavement: A Systematic Review of Children's Literature.

Similar Datasets

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