Drug death related bereavement and recovery (The END-project)

Background: Thee-poster will present the Norwegian research project «Drug Death-Related Bereavement and Recovery (The END-Project)». Mortality associated directly or indirectly with illicit drug use is a major contributor to the number of adult deaths worldwide (European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 2021). More than 200,000 people die from illicit drug overdoses every year, and this figure is higher when drug-related deaths (DRDs) are included, e.g., deaths related to HIV, hepatitis C and infections. In Norway, with a population of five million people, there are approximately 300 DRDs annually. This is an incidence rate of approximately six cases per 100,000 and is comparable to other Scandinavian countries (European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 2019). The END project aims to fill in the knowledge gap on the large group of people in society that shall live on after the loss of a close person to a DRD.

Methods: To provide a holistic understanding of a complex societal problem, the END-Project comprises five studies (Figure 1). Studies 1, 2 and 3 are about the bereaved experiences of loss, help and support, and the time before death. The data material is a survey with 255 participants and individual interviews with bereaved parents, siblings, and friends. Study 4 explores how leaders and welfare workers represent service providers and NGO's experiences helping and supporting the bereaved after DRD. The data material is focus group interviews with 105 persons from six different municipalities. While Study 5 is about knowledge translation and implementation. The project has funding until December 2023.

Results: The END-Project is the world largest project about bereaved by DRD. Thee-poster will present the main findings from published articles. Central themes are disenfranchised grief, stigma, how experiences before death affects grief and vulnerability to high levels of prolonged grief. Conclusion Bereaved by DRD represent an understudied group. The findings from the END-Project call for attention and rigorous studies of the bereaved after DRD to improve the health and quality of life of a group of weary, silent and stigmatised people.