An interdisciplinary a pproach to clinical intervention for childhood bereavement

The impact of the death of a parent has long been emphasized in the literature concerning childhood bereavement, yet little has been written about preventive intervention strategies that may facilitate positive adaptation to parental loss. One strategy that appears to have promise is creative arts therapy groups for children offered in conjunction with companion parent groups. The goal of creative arts in short-term bereavement counseling is to provide social sanction for juvenile grief through the use of activities that extend a child's understanding and expressive skills regarding parental loss. The companion parent group provides didactic and open-ended discussion focused on the members' spousal loss as well as their adjustment to the role of widowed parent. Such a bereavement intervention program has been in existence at Hospice, Inc. since 1984. A registered art therapist conducts the creative arts groups for children and a social worker facilitates the companion groups. Both parental evaluations and clinical observations sugfest that a creative arts approach may effect a productive mourning experience for children. However, the power of this approach appears diluted when a child does not have a parent in the companion group. This implies that the child in grief must be considered within the context of the famii) system and that the value of the therapy is redoubled when offered as part of an interdisciplinary interuention.