Maintaining Deceased's Room Intact — SCE Palliative Medicine MCQ

Correct answer: A — At 8 months, maintaining the room intact is within normal variation of grief; however, if this persists beyond 12 months with associated functional impairment and inability to accept the death, it may suggest avoidance‑related features of complicated grief that warrant assessment

Explanation lettering: E = shown as A · A = shown as E

Maintaining the deceased's room intact at 8 months post-bereavement can reflect continued attachment—a recognised normal variation of grief. The Royal College of Psychiatrists notes that some people may turn the deceased's room into a shrine and that most recover within one to two years. Prolonged grief disorder involves symptoms such as preoccupation, difficulty accepting the death, and ongoing intense distress lasting beyond six months. While this behaviour alone is not pathological now, persistence beyond about 12 months with functional impairment and inability to accept the death may signal complicated grief and should prompt assessment. Other options are either too rigid (A), dismissive of appropriate discussion (B), premature in timing (C), or over-pathologising normal grief (D).

Reference: Royal College of Psychiatrists: Bereavement (2025); NHS: Grief after bereavement or loss (2022), https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mental-health/mental-illnesses-and-mental-health-problems/bereavement