I spoke to Suzan last week. Hers is a disturbing but common story. I’m going to talk to palliative carers about what went wrong and report back on how to avoid this happening to you. When Suzan’s brother Frank was dying of a rare brain disease he was in an … Read more
(This was first posted on June 12 at 8.33pm.) Fantastic news – NSW is increasing funding for palliative care by $100 million. “An extra $100 million will be pumped into palliative care over four years, including funding to employ new specialists and train 300 nurses and allied health staff.” That’s … Read more
Palliative care: Provides relief from pain and other distressing symptoms Affirms life and regards dying as a normal process Intends to neither hasten nor postpone death Integrates the psychological and spiritual aspects of patient care Offers a support system to help patients live as actively as possible until death. I … Read more
It’s easy to miss the practical companioning aspect to the care of the dying in our modern, acute-care oriented health system. Creativity and Life coach Helen Carmichael lives in a Bondi flat with a view over that iconic Sydney beach and she watched from her window as an elderly neighbour lay … Read more
“Oh dear!” Linda Hansen groaned as she looked at yesterday’s goodgrief60.wordpress.com posting. Linda is the Executive Officer of Palliative Care NSW and every time a story comes out, like the one I posted yesterday, she frets that the good people working in palliative care will feel undervalued. That posting picked … 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
When someone dies who needs to be told? It can be hard to work this out, especially when you are grieving. It may not feel necessary and it may be the last thing on your mind. But letting the appropriate people know will stop them from sending unnecessary mail and … 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
Journeys of the Heart by Jodi Rose. Arbon Publishing. After losing her husband, the famous Australian swimmer Murray Rose, Jodi searched out the stories of other carers who were there for those they loved, supporting them until they died. Those interviews turned into this collection of stories. The subtitle of … Read more
“And if you somehow die of the disease then you’ve lost the battle and you didn’t fight hard enough. I think that’s toxic.”
Palliative Care Australia’s pamphlet “If Only I knew” tells the story of Suzanne, who is dying. “I’ve thought a lot about dying because my Dad was living with us when he passed. We had a lot in common because we were both facing our mortality. I could talk to him about … Read more
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