Abstract

CANUTO, Rafael Menezes Souza; FERREIRA, Ana Carolina Lima; NOVAES, Lucas Felix  and  SALLES, Rodrigo Jorge. The Grief Process in Relatives of COVID-19 Victims. Estud. pesqui. psicol. [online]. 2023, vol.23, n.2, pp.746-765.  Epub May 03, 2024. ISSN 1808-4281.  https://doi.org/10.12957/epp.2023.77710.

The loss of a family member due to COVID-19 involves particularities, such as the impossibility of farewells and proper funeral rituals due to the sanitary measures proposed throughout the years 2020 and 2021. The suppression of farewell rituals can cause psychological suffering in the bereaved, which can hinder the grieving process. Thus, this study aimed to analyse the grieving process of people who lost family members due to COVID-19. This is a qualitative methodology field research. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six family members of COVID-19 victims of the 1st or 2nd degree of kinship, age 18 or older, of both sexes, and with a minimum loss time of six months. Data analysis was performed using content analysis procedure. It was observed that aspects such as the impossibility of accompanying their family members during hospitalization, not being able to perform funeral rituals to say goodbye to the family member, and social denial of the pandemic, were factors that can hinder the process of elaborating grief in pandemic times. Therefore, it is necessary to think about measures of care, public policies, and forms of assistance for this population.

Keywords : grief; COVID-19; pandemic; psychoanalysis..

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