by Sandra Moon. This article was updated on April 13, 2023. It discusses end of life conversations. ‘I feel his organs are shutting down,’ my mother said on the phone. But how? Two days before Mum had rung me to ask for help getting Dad to the emergency ward at … Read more
In Australia, your advance care directive wishes about organ donation won’t be followed if you haven’t taken one crucial extra step. You need to register your donation at donatelife.gov.au, even though you’ve clearly stated in your advance care directive that you want to donate your organs. DonateLife explains. It seems … Read more
We were reflecting on grief recently, when Cockatoo Media’s Body and Soul podcast’s Jason Dasey and Alex Hyndman Hill interviewed me. If you’d like to listen, here is the interview. Alex asked about the good death. “A Good death is defined differently from one group to another. In our culture … Read more
Have you recently discovered you are terminally ill? Undoubtedly, on top of feeling unwell, there are a lot of emotions overcoming you and many thoughts on your mind. Some of the common concerns the terminally ill have expressed to me are things like: How do I tell my family? How … Read more
* Decision making is a human right but many people assume this right no longer exists in the vulnerable, explains lawyer Michael Perkins. To Find out more about how Autonomy First Lawyers can help the vulnerable decision maker, go to their site on the Good Grief! Business Directory. “Decision making … Read more
*This article is by April Creed, Co-Founder of www.myexsitu.com and an experienced Clinician with a background of over 25 years as a Registered nurse and Aged Care Manager. More information about ExSitu can be found in our Good Grief! Business Directory. For even the most organised of people, planning for … Read more
Expert in palliative care Richard Chye talks living. This article was inspired by our survey results asking the question ‘What is your biggest question about dying and what is your biggest fear?’ and is the fourth in a series exploring the concerns you raised. It first appeared in our Good … Read more
Picaluna Funerals does things differently and Good Grief! loves this. It’s great when you get to talk with others in the ‘death’ space working to improve our culture’s approach. Last month I was invited by Picaluna CEO Greg Inglis to speak to 22 Picaluna inductee funeral celebrants about Good Grief! … Read more
RK, 97, lives in a nursing home. He has dementia which is progressing rapidly and he’s losing his swallow reflex. So he’s more likely to aspirate food and saliva – inhaling them into his windpipe, causing pneumonia. And this is what happened, leading to fever, one night in late May … Read more
Palliative care in regional NSW at 1960s standards, expert tells ABC News By Liz Farquhar ABC News One of Australia’s first specialist palliative care doctors has accused New South Wales health authorities of dropping the ball when it comes to end of life care. Yvonne McMaster said regional areas … Read more
Heather Wiseman interviews Jeanette Lacey for Palliative Care Australia. “In my experience, about 85 per cent of Intensive Care Unit patients who had chronic and complex health conditions had never considered that they might be terminal in nature. Often it was only when they came to intensive care with an … Read more