Dying Matters is a coalition of 32,000 members which aims to help people talk more openly about dying, death and bereavement, and to make plans for the end of life. This is the annual Awareness Week and the focus this year is “The Big Conversation’.
It’s the one thing every single one of us has in common; we will all face death at some point in our lives. Yet most of us still do not feel comfortable talking about dying. At Strathcarron Hospice we are committed to raising awareness and annually we participate in Dying Matter week. It doesn’t have to be depressing, and humour can be a real help. We all want to live well and to make the most of our life until the very end. This is exactly what Strathcarron Hospice strives to achieve for all our patients.
Dying matters, not just to the family, and the patient, but to us, as a team, because our job is to make a patient’s last few days or weeks as best as we possibly can. Our Team spends time supporting patients and families through some of the sad and difficult conversations they may need to have. This can also include offering advice on some of the more practical aspects of death, dying and bereavement, such as making their personal wishes known or planning for a funeral.
Many of us have strong views about care and what happens after we die, but if we don’t talk about our wishes these are unlikely to be met. We help patients and families to achieve ordinary and extraordinary goals. It’s not always easy to begin conversations but speaking openly about the future can improve anyone’s quality of life. During Dying Matters awareness week we encourage you to consider having similar conversations with your loved ones and to think about making plans for this inevitable event in all our lives.
