The Australian Federal Election was officially called today and last week HammondCare’s CEO Mike Baird issued a challenge to the Federal Government to match Labor’s pledge to improve aged care workforce wages. HammondCare provides aged care in Australia. Mike Baird is the former Liberal Premier of NSW. Mike’s involvement keeps … Read more
Here’s some good news for Australians! Australia comes fourth in a ranking of end-of-life care, in a new assessment and comparison of 81 countries by The Lien Centre for Palliative Care at Duke-NUS Medical School. The report, Cross Country Comparison of Expert Assessments of the Quality of Death and Dying … Read more
We’ve uploaded a set of videos on mouth care this week. They’re designed for everyday people caring for someone who is dying at home. At first glance the subject seems straight forward – and then suddenly it’s overwhelming. Am I doing the right thing? Could I hurt her? If do … Read more
Sometimes there’s an overlap between Good Grief! and the other newspaper articles I write and today’s story published in The Daily Telegraph, Mosman Daily, North Shore Times and The Wentworth Courier is a good example. Behind every dying person there’s usually at least one dedicated carer – often a whole … Read more
Some ideas in medical studies can look very obscure and technical to the layperson – yet in reality nothing could be further from the truth. A number will transform into very practical improvements for patients, such as those who need skilled care at the end of life. The following is … Read more
By Sandra Moon Two weeks ago, with state border closures in place and Local Government Area (LGA) lockdowns due to COVID-19, my mother Eleanor took my father Barry into the Emergency Department not knowing he would never come home again. While it had been a long health battle for Dad, … 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 and end of life care are absolutely critical parts of aged care,” Sean Rooney, Leading Age Services Australia CEO, told Good Grief! as the Federal budget with its big investment in aged care was announced. This follows the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety The Commission reported “confronting personal stories of under-resourcing, … Read more
Here’s Good Grief’s bullet point review of Volume 1 Summary and Recommendations, of Australia’s Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. It’s a report we want to help you keep an eye on. The Commission’s report, delivered last February, is a fantastic opportunity for everyone – including lay people, … Read more
We love this. Kathryn Mannix is a palliative care specialist from the UK who we admire. And she’s recently written a book on approaching death, With The End In Mind. This is a similar take to mine – which is not as surprising as it may seem. Because when people … Read more
Of the many articles I read last year, this one really lingered. It’s an interview with the always provocative, always fiercely practical Colleen Cartwright. Journalist Caroline Egan published it in HelloCare in November last year. Colleen is a specialist in aged care, advance care planning and the rights of the … Read more
The challenges continue for those of us grappling with Covid-19 restrictions and the impacts for the elderly in aged care. This has become a very personal dilemma for me. My 96-year-old father has developed a sense of being imprisoned and I must say his distress over this has caused my … Read more
Hmmm, the Swedish model again. A fascinating report by Lisa Millar on this week’s ABC Foreign Correspondent, talked about the Swedish model for managing Covid-19. Her report looked at the latest phase of its evolution. Sweden has taken a liberal attitude to social restrictions because of Covid-19. To see Lisa’s … Read more
The favourite expression of some Anglican friends is: “the best is yet to come.” They’re referring to life after death, and it’s a very comforting thought. But for 83-year-old Scottish Margaret this has turned out to be true before then, right at the end of life, while she lives in … Read more
Pharmacists are key players in the delivery of effective palliative care because they deliver and manage the drugs to help ease symptoms, especially pain. ‘In many ways, they are unseen essential workers, caring for those in need during a critical time.’ said South Australian pharmacist Paul Tait MPS, who is … Read more