Hospice care helps curb depression among surviving spouses

Hospice care helps curb depression among surviving spouses


Grief is unavoidable after the loss of loved ones. For those who lose their spouse after a long battle with an illness, the pain can be almost unbearable. But a new study conducted by the Icahn (I-can) School of Medicine at Mount Sinai found that hospice care can help curb depression among surviving spouses. Results showed that the spouses of patients who received hospice care had fewer symptoms of depression compared to those whose loved ones didn’t receive hospice care.

Hospice care focuses on improving quality of life for those with serious illnesses, as opposed to offering curative treatments. Services of hospice care include symptom management, spiritual counseling, social services and bereavement counseling. This study was the first to look at how spouses of hospice patients reacted to the deaths of their loved ones.

To conduct the study, researchers analyzed data from 1,016 patients and their surviving husbands and wives. They then compared those whose partners received hospice care to a similar group whose spouses did not. Surviving spouses were followed for up to two years after the death of their partners.

Regardless of hospice care, the majority of bereaved spouses experienced increased symptoms of depression compared to other times in their lives. But the surviving spouses of hospice patients seemed to experience less depression overall.

Although the research does not highlight which hospice services seem to ease depression in the loved ones who are left behind, the researchers say the data shows that more services are needed for the families of dying patients. The study’s author also suggested that caregiver support and bereavement services should be expanded to those who are not hospice eligible.

Losing a loved one is never easy, but extra support could help ease the burden.

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