Scoping Review of Peer-Led Support for People Bereaved by Suicide

Agnes Higgins, Lisbeth Hybholt, Olivia A. Meuser, Jessica Eustace Cook, Carmel Downes and Jean Morrissey
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Agnes Higgins: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, D02PN40 Dublin, Ireland
Lisbeth Hybholt: Mental Health Services East, Psychiatry Region Zealand, 4200 Slagelse, Denmark
Olivia A. Meuser: College of Arts & Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19102, USA
Jessica Eustace Cook: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, D02PN40 Dublin, Ireland
Carmel Downes: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, D02PN40 Dublin, Ireland
Jean Morrissey: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, D02PN40 Dublin, Ireland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 6, 1-12

Abstract: Suicide bereavement support groups are a widely available format of postvention service. Although other reviews have addressed peer-led bereavement interventions, no review has focused specifically on peer-led support for people bereaved by suicide. Informed by a framework for undertaking scoping reviews, we conducted a systematic review according to PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Searches conducted in May 2021 of peer-reviewed literature in MEDLINE (EBSCO), CINAHL Complete (EBSCO), PsycINFO (EBSCO), EMBASE (Elsevier), AMED (EBSCO), ERIC (EBSCO), Web of Science (Core Collection), ASSIA (Proquest), and Global Index Medicus. The search was not limited by language, and all studies were included to full text screening. The search identified 10 studies conducted between 1994 and 2020 in five countries. The selected papers were subjected to quality assessment. The interventions included face-to-face groups, telephone and online groups/forums and were evaluated using a variety of methodologies, which made comparison and synthesis challenging. Thematic analysis resulted in four themes: motivation, impact, aspects of intervention which hindered/enhanced outcomes, and recommendations for the practice of peer support made by the authors. While there were methodological limitations to most studies included in this review; the studies do indicate the potential benefit of peer-led support to those bereaved through suicide. Future studies should provide a definition of ‘peer’ and a clear description of the intervention being evaluated. As the field matures there is a need for more rigorous evaluation of peer interventions with representative samples, studies that compare the impact of various types of peer interventions, and studies of the peer group processes.

Keywords: bereavement; suicide; peer interventions; scoping review; postvention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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