Hospitals and Healthcare

After losing her son to suicide six years ago, Kate Slatter thought she knew how to handle complex grief. But it was after the sudden death of another close family member that she found herself overwhelmed and in need of an end-of-life expert carer.

Being aware of terminal lucidity can help loved ones understand it is part of the dying process.

I have received many lovely messages in the weeks since my dad died – including one that will always stay with me, writes Adrian Chiles

There is a growing demand for people who help the terminally ill have a good death.

There are many social assumptions about how to best ‘get through’ grief. We interview 95 people about their experiences of loss and found we need to rethink what grief looks and feels like.

Getty ImagesThe release of The Patient's Perspective video marks an important advancement in end-of-life care - acknowledging that a patient's voice

In a place where time seems to stand still, where life and death dance in a delicate balance, the presence of a physician can make a world of difference for the patient and their caregivers. I believe that medicine has the power to heal not just the body, but also the spirit, and it is during the ward rounds that I have the opportunity to connect with my patients. Beyond the medical jargon and clinical procedures, I have come to understand the tremendous impact a human connection can have on their well-being.

Community members are partnering with academics and clinicians to shape research and services in palliative care, say University of Melbourne experts

This toolkit, Measurement Best Practices, provides guidance on measurement so your palliative care program can demonstrate value to stakeholders and maintain quality standards.

Cathy Watson, who is dying, was devastated she couldn’t attend her son’s wedding. But then an ambulance service stepped in.

An Atlantic reading list about an existential question

Anniversary feels wrong. But English doesn’t appear to offer much else.

Francois Ozon’s latest film is based on the memoir of his frequent screenwriting collaborator, Emmanuèle Bernheim.

There is a growing awareness of how women’s pain has been minimised in our society and our healthcare system

After a decision to spare her further interventions, she lives a full two months more – and teaches us a few things along the way

Grief is raw, complex, often fraught — and "moving on" from a loss is rarely straightforward or linear. 

As Myfanwy Jones and her family cared for her father in his last days, she was struck by the beauty, the memory and the burrowing in

Treatment wasn’t helping her anorexia, so doctors allowed her to stop — no matter the consequences. But is a “palliative” approach to mental illness really ethical?

Michelle Clancy and Joy Jarratt moved to Australia from Yorkshire in the 1980s to work in palliative care, and now spend every day together.

A patient who would only meet in a pub, a man whose wife said he was going to die at 3pm.

My father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s the year I turned 18. Like most women I know, caregiving has been woven into my working life, writes the 2023 Stella prize winner