Table 3.

Attributes of the included empirical studies, survey studies, case studies, and opinion pieces.

Author & Date	Location	Type of Study	Study Aim/Research Question	Setting and Participant Details	Data Collection	Data Analysis	Results/Findings
Bogle, C.L. (2018) [51]	US	Qualitative study	Exploring the lived experiences of law enforcement officers concerning colleague suicide and the impact a suicide has on a law enforcement agency/department.	Police Department Law enforcement officers n = 11 Male = 7 African American = 10 Caucasian = 1	Semi-structured interviews	Thematic analysis	Four major themes: (1) Uniqueness of the law enforcement community (2) Lack of available resources regarding mental health services (3) Reactive response to the suicide event and (4) The necessity for consistent mental health services.
Carr, R.B. (2011) [52]	Iraq	First-person account	Reporting the author’s first-hand experience of supporting a US army unit in Iraq after a soldier suicide.	US Army Psychiatrist in support role. n = 1 Male	N/A	N/A	Acute effects of suicide and effects over the subsequent four months.
Deheeger, J. (2008) [53]	Belgium	Report	Reporting the incidence, impact and postvention response following a colleague suicide in the Belgian Defence.	Belgian Armed Forces No Participants	N/A	N/A	Grief, guilt, and feelings of blame Fear of social stigma The service member’s need for help Postvention trajectory of care: Pre-incident education Post-incident procedure of psychosocial care for victims Structure of the postvention crisis intervention procedure.
Gulliver et al. (2016) [36]	US	Evaluation	To subject the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) standard operating procedure (SOP) to an iterative process to develop a national guideline for suicide postvention.	US Fire Department Initial Expert Review Group: n = 5 Female = 1 All = at least two years exp in fire service	Expert review group and 90-min focus groups, video recorded.	Data were taken at face value and used to inform the development of the guidance.	The expert review group discussed the need for more depth in the FDNY SOP as well as adding more information and procedures around responding to family and department members. Focus groups suggested making the SOP more operational and directive and breaking it up into two documents: (1) educational material (to be shortened into a pamphlet) and (2) the SOP. They also suggested calling it a guideline rather than an SOP. Feedback was incorporated into the final version of the SOP guidelines.
				Six focus groups: n = 61 75% male Mean age = 47 years 22.9% Hispanic 9.8% African American 72/1% Caucasian	Six focus groups in three test cities reviewed the SOP manual and provided feedback on barriers to implementation
Kleespies et al. (2011) [54]	US	Literature review, interviews, and review of case reports	To investigate the incidence of psychologist suicide and its impact on colleagues, students or interns, patients or clients and the profession.	US Psychologists. Reports that 14 cases of suicide were identified but does not clarify the number of participants interviewed nor participant details.	Interviews	Not reported	Postvention efforts to address the needs of all survivors are needed. Professionals can help colleagues by clarifying the wishes of the deceased for closing their practice. The extent to which colleagues may experience a complicated bereavement and need support is undetermined.
Lynn, C.W. (2008) [55]	US	Case study	To explore the role of the occupational health nurse in supporting staff following the death co-worker suicide.	US Hospital Health workers	Case Study	N/A	Occupational health nurses can be the guiding force for first-line nurses after a suicide. Preparation begins with recognising that suicide is a genuine health emergency and requires the same planning as any other safety-related issue. Education and resources through EAP can prevent suicide and facilitate postvention.
Malecka, K.A. (2020) [56]	Poland	Qualitative multiple case study	Exploring how four Polish universities managed suicides. Presenting the lived experiences of participants holistically.	Higher Education Institutions Colleagues of deceased HE workers. n = 7 Academic staff = 5 Administrative staff = 2 Polish = 5 ‘Of foreign descent’ = 2	Semi-structured interviews	Thematic data explication	Eight thematic areas: Notification of the deaths Personal responses to the deaths Institutional & managerial responses Professional help Formal and informal acknowledgements Administrative matters The reality of organisationally sponsored loss of education Mortality (mis)management: additional loss stories
Pak et al. (2019) [57]	US	Literature review	Providing a summary of the postvention literature with special emphasis placed on the military organisation; proposing a conceptual model for understanding Military-Unit Suicide Survivorship; and highlighting postvention strategies within the DoD.	US Army No participants	Qualitative, narrative, and evaluative review. Methods of data collection and analysis are not reported.		Proposes a conceptual model for military unit suicide survivorship based on the literature. Proposes postvention strategies and recommendations. Makes research, clinical, and policy recommendations.
Sever & Ozdemir (2019) [58]	Turkey	Qualitative study	Exploring the impact of a staff member’s suicide on the organisation, faculty, and administration in a Turkish academic institution. Highlighting the influence of culture and belief in responses to suicide, where many people are Sunni Muslims, a belief system that strongly disapproves of suicide.	Higher Education Institution n = 7 Male = 4 Colleagues n = 5 Administrators n = 2	Open questions provided by email	Interpretative phenomenological design	Two categories, seven themes Personal: Shock Questioning and feeling responsible Stigmatisation or asking for forgiveness Personal lessons Regrets Organisational: Solidarity and administrative support What needs to be changed
Yentis, Shinde, Plunkett & Mortimore (2019) [59]	UK	Survey	A working party to review anaesthetist suicide and provide guidance for anaesthetists, departments, and employers.	Survey sent to anaesthetists working in the UK. n = 3638	Anonymous online survey	Descriptive statistics	Most respondents were unaware of the existence of policies on mental illness, addiction, or suicide. 1916 cases of suicide were reported by 1397 respondents. A third of respondents who reported a suicide had experienced more than one case. Most reported suicide in the last 10 years involving anaesthetic drugs. Deficiencies were noted in support and how deaths were handled, although examples of good support were also described.