Marvin OnumonuThe Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital (SaTH) NHS Trust has launched a study into a bereavement support programme for healthcare staff.
Developed by Jules Lewis, SWAN end of life care facilitator and lead for staff bereavement support service at SaTH, and Jules Lock, lead SWAN end of life care volunteer at SaTH, the study focuses on the Openness, Wellbeing, Empathy and New Beginnings (OWEN) model.
The research, funded by NHS England and the University of Staffordshire, aims to test the model and gather staff feedback on its impact on health and wellbeing.
The study’s results will help create a tailored support programme and provide evidence for other organisations to consider similar investments.
Lewis said: “I am very passionate about supporting people following a bereavement, it can be very hard to return to work after the death of a loved one, especially when you work in the NHS as you may be looking after patients in their last hours or days of their life.
“Supporting our staff so they can continue to support others is so important.
“I would like to thank our trained volunteers who will support this pilot study, the Psychology Service who will provide supervision during the duration of the pilot study, SaTH Research Team and my supervisors Wilf McSherry and Fiona Cust from The University of Staffordshire.”
