“A knock on the door”: A qualitative analysis of death notification to parents of fallen “lone soldiers” in the Israeli defense forces

The term “lone soldiers” relates to military personnel who serve in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) without family support. This qualitative interpretive phenomenological study is based on interviews with eleven bereaved parents, exploring the death notification experience for parents living outside of Israel. Analysis revealed three themes: (a) diversity in death notification experience; (b) unpreparedness for receiving the death notification; and (c) difficulty in making sense of the loss following the death notification. The geographical distance presented a unique variable for the death notification procedure for bereaved parents living outside of Israel, and the subsequent experience of the death notification. The findings are discussed based on the theoretical groundings of Chaos theory, focusing on the physical, emotional, cultural, and social disconnect expressed by parents during the death notification experience. Implications for death notification procedure and parental bereavement support are considered.