written by Gina Tarditi, PhD student with the Glasgow End of Life Studies Group When I began the online Master’s programme in End of Life Studies at the University of Glasgow in January 2021, I never imagined that I would form a lasting bond with my fellow students, all from different countries and cultures, that… Continue reading →
The recent invasion of the National Guard into Washington DC has been unsettling to many across the US and the world. One of the reasons the current Trump administration has given as to the need for the national guard to be in the capitol is homelessness. Trump has ordered unhoused residents out of Washington DC… Continue reading →
What actually happens at a Death Café? What do people talk about? And why do attendees appear to find talking about death so … enjoyable?! Over the course of my doctoral studies with the Glasgow End of Life Studies Group (2017-21) I attended 20 Death Cafes across the UK, studying people’s interactions and interviewing attendees… Continue reading →
Blog by Ruth Bickerton, PhD Candidate in Human Geography at the University of Dundee Almost one in five people organising a funeral in the UK have notable financial concerns about paying for it[1]. This means that over 126,000 funerals each year cause real financial problems[2]. Funerals can cost on average in the region of £4,000 for… Continue reading →
Homeless, unhoused, unsheltered, houseless, hobo, bum, vagrant, transient, street person… At the start of 2021, I submitted my PhD thesis in Creative Writing, Not All Deaths are Created Equal: Essays Exploring the Intersection of Death, Inequality, and Homelessness, to a book publisher for consideration. My book is a journey to understand what happens to someone who dies while… Continue reading →
The authors of this blog have both been involved in palliative care for over a decade, albeit for different reasons. Claire Morris is a global palliative care advocate within a palliative care international non-governmental organisation and Lucy Watts has been accessing palliative care services since she was 17 years old as a result of a rare,… Continue reading →
‘Total Pain’ as the Pain of a Lifetime This post looks at Cicely Saunders’ influential term ‘total pain’ in terms of endings and limits. ‘Total pain’ articulates how pain for someone whose life is ending is a whole overwhelming experience which combines physical, psychological, social and spiritual elements. My own PhD project looks at how… Continue reading →
Eight minutes and forty-six seconds. That’s how long an officer kept his knee on George Floyd’s neck resulting in his death from asphyxiation. In eulogizing Floyd, Reverend Al Sharpton said, “Since four hundred and one years ago, the reason we could never be who we wanted and dreamed of being is you kept your knee… Continue reading →
