Abstract
Though referred to as the ‘great leveller’, death may marginalise, affecting not only the treatment of the dead, but also those who are left behind. With reference to new research this chapter focuses on one such form of marginalised death, that which is linked to drug and/or alcohol use and the implications for the bereaved family members left behind. This group, though sizeable, has been neglected in academic, policy and practice terms, in the UK and elsewhere. This has profoundly negative consequences for the treatment they receive from professionals and practitioners involved in dealing with a death and its aftermath, as well as from the wider society. With policy and practice initiatives focused on preventing such deaths, those left behind remain a hidden, neglected and ‘at-risk’ population in terms of the effects this type of bereavement may have on individual, family and social circumstances, particularly the social stigma that such deaths attract (Valentine et al., 2015, forthcoming). In times of austerity, despite some practitioners’ growing awareness of the need to improve their response to those bereaved by substance use, organisations are under-resourced as well as under-informed about the needs of this group. Drawing on interviews with bereaved adults and focus groups with professionals, this chapter identifies the relationship between social stigma and service failures and considers how these might be addressed to provide a better response to this group of bereaved people. The chapter is organised into the following sections: Bereavement following a drug or alcohol-related death; Bereavement policy; Improving the experiences of those bereaved by substance use; Compassion; Language; Being treated as an individual; Working together; Implications for policy and practice.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Arcidiacono, C, Velleman, R., Procentese, F. Albanesi, C. and Sommantico, M. (2009) ‘Impact and Coping in Italian families of drug and alcohol users,’ Qualitative Research in Psychology, 6(4), 260–80.
Ballatt, J. and Campling, P. (2011) Intelligent Kindness: Reforming the Culture of Healthcare (London: Royal College of Psychiatrists).
Barnard, M. (2007) Drug Addiction and Families (London and Philadelphia: Kingsley).
Beynon, C, McVeigh, J., Hurst, A. and Marr, A. (2010) ‘Older and sicker: Changing mortality of drug users in treatment in the North West of England,’ International Journal of Drug Policy, 21, 429–31.
Cole-King, A. and Gilbert, P. (2011) ‘Compassionate care: The theory and the reality,’ Journal of Holistic Health Care, 8(3), 29–37.
Corden, A., Hirst, M. and Nice, K. (2008) Financial Implications of Death of a Partner (York: Social Policy Research Unit, University of York).
Corkery, J. (2008) ‘UK drug-related mortality — issues in definition and classification,’ Drugs and Alcohol Today, 8(2), 17–25.
Da Silva, E. A., Noto, A. R., and Formigoni, M. L. (2007) ‘Death by drug overdose: Impact on families,’ Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 39(3), 301–6.
European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) (2012). 2012 Annual Report on the State of the Drugs Problem in Europe. Available at: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/annual-report/2012.
Erskine, S., Maheswaran, R., Pearson, T. and Gleeson, D. (2010) ‘Socioeconomic deprivation, urban-rural location and alcohol-related mortality in England and Wales,’ BMC Public Health, 10, 99.
Feigelman, W., Jordan, J. R., Mcintosh, J. L. and Feigelman, B. (2012) Devastating Losses: How Parents Cope with the Death of a Child to Suicide or Drugs (New York: Springer Publishing Co).
Goffman, E. (1963) Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity (London: Penguin).
Gossop, M., Stewart, D., Treacy, S., et al. (2002) ‘A prospective study of mortality among drug misusers during a 4-year period after seeking treatment,’ Addiction, 97, 39–47.
Grace, P. (2012) On Track or Off the Rails? A Phenomenological Study of Children’s Experiences of Dealing with Parental Bereavement through Substance Misuse. Unpublished PhD Thesis. University of Manchester, UK.
Guy, P. (2004) ‘Bereavement through drug use: Messages from research,’ Practice, 16(1), 43–54.
Jones, P. (2013) ‘Equality of care: Substance users, the emergency care perspective,’ Journal of Paramedic Practice, 5, 548–9.
Link, B. G. and Phelan, J. C. (2001) ‘Conceptualizing stigma,’ Annual Review of Sociology, 27, 363–85.
Lown, B. A., Rosen, J. and Marttila, J. (2011) ‘An agenda for improving compassionate care: A survey shows about half of patients say such care is missing,’ Health Affairs, 30, 1772–8.
McGuiness, B. (2009) ‘Grief in the workplace: Developing a bereavement policy,’ Bereavement Care, 28(1), 2–8.
National Records of Scotland (2014) Drug Related Deaths in Scotland. Available at: http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files2/stats/drug-related-deaths/2013/drugs-related-deaths-2013.pdf.
NCPC (2014) Life after Death: Six Steps to Improve Support in Bereavement (London: The National Council for Palliative Care).
Office for National Statistics (2013) Deaths Related to Drug Poisoning in England and Wales. Available at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/dcpl71778_320841.pdf.
Office for National Statistics (2014) Population Estimates for UK, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, Mid-2013. Available at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pop-estimate/population-estimates-for-uk-england-and-wales-scotland-and-northern-ireland/2013/index.html.
Office for National Statistics (2015) Alcohol-Related Deaths in the United Kingdom. Deaths Registered 1994 to 2013. Available at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/datasets-and-tables/index.html?pageSize=50&sortBy=none&sortDirection=none&newquery=Alcohol-related+deaths&content-type=Reference+table&content-type=Dataset.
Oreo, A. and Ozgul, S. (2007) ‘Grief experiences of parents coping with an adult child with problem substance use,’ Addiction Research and Theory, 15(1), 71–83.
Orford, J., Natera, G., Copello, A., Atkinson, C, Tiburcio, M., Velleman, R., Crundall, I., Mora, J., Templeton, L., and Walley, G. (2005) Coping with Alcohol and Drug Problems: The Experiences of Family Members in Three Contrasting Cultures (London: Taylor and Francis).
Orford, J., Velleman, R., Guillermina, N., Templeton, L. and Copello, A. (2012) ‘Addiction in the family is a major but neglected contributor to the global burden of adult ill-health,’ Social Science and Medicine, 78, 70–7.
Seale, C. and van der Geest, S. (2004) ‘Good and bad death: Introduction,’ Social Science and Medicine, 58(2004), 883–5.
Strang, J., McCambridge, J., Best, D., Beswick, T, Beam, J., Rees, S. and Gossop, S. (2003) ‘Loss of tolerance and overdose mortality following inpatient detoxification: Follow up study,’ British Medical Journal, 326, 959–60.
UNODC (2012) World Drug Report. United Nations publication, Sales No. E.12.XI.1.
Valentine, C, Bauld, L. and Walter, T. (Forthcoming) ‘Bereavement following substance misuse: A disenfranchised grief,’ Omega Journal of Death Studies.
Walter, T., Ford, A., Templeton, L., Valentine, C. and Velleman, R., (2015) ‘Everyday kindness: What people bereaved by substance use say about compassion and stigma,’ Health and Social Care in the Community. Unpublished paper.
World Health Organisation (2013) Management of Substance Abuse. Available at: http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/facts/psychoactives/en/index.html.
Woodthorpe, K., Rumble, H. and Valentine, C. (2013) ‘Putting the grave into social policy: State support for funerals in contemporary UK society,’ Journal of Social Policy, 42(3), 605–22.
Youngson, R. (2010) ‘Taking off the armor,’ Illness, Crisis and Loss, 18, 79–82.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2016 Christine Valentine and Linda Bauld
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Valentine, C., Bauld, L. (2016). Marginalised Deaths and Policy. In: Foster, L., Woodthorpe, K. (eds) Death and Social Policy in Challenging Times. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137484901_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137484901_7
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-55799-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-48490-1
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)