Observational studyBMJ open2018
What are the physical and psychological health effects of suicide bereavement on family members? An observational and interview mixed-methods study in Ireland.
Observational study in BMJ open, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 40 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
40 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Grief-Related Chest Pain: A Review, Conceptual Analysis, and Integrative Model.Psychophysiology · 2026Pooled it
- Impacts of suicide bereavement on men: a systematic review.Frontiers in public health · 2024Pooled it
- Effectiveness of interventions for people bereaved through suicide: a systematic review of controlled studies of grief, psychosocial and suicide-related outcomes.BMC psychiatry · 2019Pooled it
- Suicide Postvention Service Models and Guidelines 2014-2019: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in psychology · 2019Pooled it
- A Randomized Controlled Trial of an SMS-Based Brief Contact Intervention for People Bereaved by Suicide.Suicide & life-threatening behavior · 2025Trial
- Suicidal Cognitions and Suicidal Ideation Severity: The Moderating Effect of Psychological Inflexibility About Suicidal Ideation.Archives of suicide research : official journal of the International Academy for Suicide Research · 2026Article
- Guardians of Memory, Dignity, and Family Cohesion: The Enduring Protective Role Underpinning Suicide-Bereaved Mothers' Psychosocial Needs and Engagement with Mental Health Care.Nursing reports (Pavia, Italy) · 2026Article
- Surviving the Tsunami of Receiving a 'Goodbye' Note.Journal of psychiatric and mental health nursing · 2026Article
- A Pilot Qualitative Study to Better Understand the Factors Related to Suicides and Inform Public Health Action Across a Predominantly Coastal and Rural Area: Cornwall, Southwest of England.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Validation and Testing of a Suicide Prevention Program in Preventing Suicidal Ideation and Improving the Mental Well-Being of School-Going Adolescents: Protocol for a Pre-Post Intervention Study.JMIR research protocols · 2025Article
- Mortality Risk Following a Household Suicide.JAMA network open · 2025Article
- Jarring Encounters: Discomfort, Disruption, and Dominant Narratives of Suicide.Qualitative health research · 2025Article
- Validation and cultural adaptation of the Persian version of the suicidal ideation attributes scale (SIDAS).BMC public health · 2025Article
- The Etiopathogenic Mosaic of Suicidal Behaviour.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Article
- Surviving families: experiences of losing a family member to suicide.Revista latino-americana de enfermagem · 2025Article
- Alinéa suicide postvention program: a codesigned early proactive intervention for survivors.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- Communication on familial suicide: development of the Family Communication on Suicide Questionnaire.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2024Article
- Article
- Qualitative inquiry into the experience of suicide loss, aftereffects and coping strategies of suicide-bereaved Greek-speaking parents in Cyprus.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesResearch focussing on the impact of suicide bereavement on family members' physical and psychological health is scarce. The aim of this study was to examine how family members have been physically and psychologically affected following suicide bereavement. A secondary objective of the study was to describe the needs of family members bereaved by suicide.
designA mixed-methods study was conducted, using qualitative semistructured interviews and additional quantitative self-report measures of depression, anxiety and stress (DASS-21).
settingConsecutive suicide cases and next-of-kin were identified by examining coroner's records in Cork City and County, Ireland from October 2014 to May 2016.
participantsEighteen family members bereaved by suicide took part in a qualitative interview. They were recruited from the Suicide Support and Information System: A Case-Control Study (SSIS-ACE), where family members bereaved by suicide (n=33) completed structured measures of their well-being.
resultsQualitative findings indicated three superordinate themes in relation to experiences following suicide bereavement: (1) co-occurrence of grief and health reactions; (2) disparity in supports after suicide and (3) reconstructing life after deceased's suicide. Initial feelings of guilt, blame, shame and anger often manifested in enduring physical, psychological and psychosomatic difficulties. Support needs were diverse and were often related to the availability or absence of informal support by family or friends. Quantitative results indicated that the proportion of respondents above the DASS-21 cut-offs respectively were 24% for depression, 18% for anxiety and 27% for stress.
conclusionsHealthcare professionals' awareness of the adverse physical and psychosomatic health difficulties experienced by family members bereaved by suicide is essential. Proactively facilitating support for this group could help to reduce the negative health sequelae. The effects of suicide bereavement are wide-ranging, including high levels of stress, depression, anxiety and physical health difficulties.
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