Projects
Let's Talk
'Let's Talk' was a seminar organised by Faith in Older People in collaboration with the Church of Scotland and Action on Churches Together to consider how congregations were involved with issues around death and dying.
The seminar, designed for members of congregations, demonstrated that even within the church there is a reluctance to talk about death and dying. There is a real need to increase confidence in being able to approach these issues and to embrace those who have been bereaved.
The session looked at the importance of adapting to ageing
congregations and the positive aspects in considering worship patterns; group
discussions and an openness about end of life matters from planning to
support.
FiOP was delighted to be working with Mark Hazelwood from Good Life, Good Death, Good Grief as the seminar was held during GLGDGG awareness week.
There were also stimulating presentations from Jenny Henderson from Alzheimer's Scotland; Ewan Kelly from NHS Chaplaincy Development Unit and Harriet Mowat, Faith in Older People. This was a strong combination and stimulated a good deal of discussion and the potential for follow up. More 'talking' is clearly required.
Glasgow Dares to Discuss
On Friday 17 May staff from the Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice set up a stall in the main thoroughfare of Silverburn Shopping Centre in Glasgow, hoping to encourage passers-by to talk about death, dying and bereavement and share their wisdom.
48 people participated in conversations; many more watched
from afar. While some of the 48 readily admitted their story as a patient, or a
family member, many more simply spoke about their own life experiences.
Asking people “what advice would you give….” Or “what helped you…..” or “what do you think about….” encouraged rich life experiences to be shared. As the day wore on, the discussions range in breadth and depth, and by the end of the day the white-board was full of shared wisdom.
Drop-in session for teachers at Castlemilk High
To help support staff health and wellbeing, Castlemilk High School organised a lunch time drop in on Friday 17th May to encourage staff to take action to promote more openness about death, dying and bereavement. A range of literature on the subject area was available for staff to take away along with information on a free will making service. This proved to be very popular with staff and many highlighted this was something on their “to do list”.
Refreshments and some home baking helped provide a relaxed and informal environment which encouraged staff to sit down and chat with colleagues about their own personal experiences and thoughts around death, dying and bereavement.
CHAS establishes the '100% Project'
The Children's Hospice Association Scotland (CHAS) has established the 100% Project, a community engagement project which aims to start conversations about death, dying and bereavement in a life-affirming way.
There is anecdotal evidence that families who use CHAS experience isolation and stress through the issues of death, dying and bereavement not being communicated well or at all. CHAS has a responsibility to play a part in helping to challenge societal views on these issues in the hope that this will make communication with and for families that little bit easier.
The 100% Project aims to:
- Promote positive attitudes to death, dying and bereavement
- Start to tackle the silence and isolation experienced in relation to death, dying and bereavement
- Raise awareness of the issues amongst those involved with CHAS, including service users, our teams and the public, and develop people’s skills and confidence in this area
- Start conversations
- Promote community involvement and understanding of issues relating to life-shortening conditions
- Be creative and imaginative in its approach but at all times sensitive and appropriate.
Awareness week 2013
To mark Good Life, Good Death, Good Grief Awareness week 2013, Before I Die
walls appeared at CHAS sites across Scotland, encouraging people to reflect on what is important in their lives. The 100% Project asked people to vote for their all-time favourite weepie. The winner, Up, was shown at the Filmhouse in Edinburgh on 19 May, alongside the premier of a short film in which parents who have lost a child talk of the importance of being open about death, dying and bereavement.
Cafe conversations in the Western Isles
To mark Good Life, Good Death, Good Grief Awareness Week 2013, Before I
die walls were constructed in the Western Isles Hospital, Balivanich Clinic
and Tagsa Uibhist. There was a
tremendous response, with people freely sharing their
varied aspirations for the future such as: 'Cherish those close to me'; 'Camp
under the Northern Lights'; and 'Invite you all to my 100th Birthday
Party'!
A café conversation was held in the Western Isles Hospital during this week which enabled University of Stirling nursing students and NHS staff to discuss issues surrounding death and dying. Various topics were discussed including how to break bad news and what to say to those recently bereaved. Feedback from the event will help inform how teaching is delivered to undergraduate nurses at the Western Isles campus and future bereavement care training in NHS Western Isles.
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