The world stopped making sense when my sister died. She wasn’t supposed to die young, with a small child, most of her life still to be lived – it was an unprecedented event. In order to try and find meaning to my inchoate grief, I began to explore others’ stories and experiences with dying and… Continue reading →
Reflections of a Hospice CEO on the emerging COVID-19 crisis Toiling up the knoll on brittle ground frost we clambered over a creaking stile to be rewarded by the sun glistening on Windermere set against a backdrop of distant snowclad fells. Our short walk had brought a welcome opportunity to reflect during our annual board… Continue reading →
Coronavirus is changing the way we live in a way that is repeatedly said to be unprecedented. We say we are living through strange times, extraordinary times, difficult times. For some of us lucky enough to be able to work from home time might be stretching out in lockdown into an endless series of Thursday… Continue reading →
Autumn 2019 saw a team of us in the Glasgow End of Life Studies Group set out into unknown educational waters. Over a three-week period, we delivered a free online course called End of Life Care – Challenges and Innovation. We possibly didn’t anticipate how long our preparations and course building would take. We probably… Continue reading →
It is with huge pleasure this month that we embark upon a truly global initiative within our team – a new programme of online learning in end of life studies. In our research group at the University of Glasgow we feel we belong to a worldwide community of people with a shared interest in questions… Continue reading →
“Death is terrifying”, writes the author Susan Cheever, “…because it is so ordinary. It happens all the time”. Continue reading →
Back in March 2019, a group of researchers from the UK and Japan gathered in Dumfries to launch the Mitori Project. The ESRC funded project aims to examine end of life care issues in the UK and Japan in three workstreams: ‘Culture’, ‘Practice’ and ‘Policy’. Time flies! Six months have passed since the first workshop.… Continue reading →
We are all aware of the headlines about the impact of government austerity measures on communities up and down the UK. But what impact has austerity had on people’s experiences of dying and, specifically, their ability to die in their own home? What is it like to be facing death in materially constrained circumstances in… Continue reading →
