• Susan Selby, Alison Jones, Teresa Burgess, Sheila Clark, Nicole Moulding, and Justin Beilby.
• Discipline of General Practice, School of Population Health and Clinical Practice, Faculty of Health Sciences, The University of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. susan.selby@adelaide.edu.au
• Aust Fam Physician. 2007 Sep 1; 36 (9): 768-70.

AbstractDisenfranchised grief results from a loss that is not or cannot be openly acknowledged, publicly mourned, or socially supported. This article aims to explain the concept and varying presentations of disenfranchised grief and outlines the importance of the general practitioner's role. Preliminary quantitative results of a study of 15 cross cultural workers re-entering Australia are presented, showing more than half experiencing grief during re-entry and all having some form of disenfranchised grief. Disenfranchised grievers present with various symptoms, however, primary care has focused on mental illness, with little recognition of loss and grief issues, especially disenfranchised grief. Further research is required and currently underway to design and formally test a model that can be implemented within an Australian fee-for-service setting.

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