Spiritual care for the dying...

Spiritual care for the dying is one of the most vital and poignant elements of the work of a healthcare chaplain, particularly for those who serve in palliative care settings.

We asked Karen Murphy, Chaplain and Spiritual Lead, Weston Hospicecare, to share some thoughts on this… Karen says, “Spiritual Care in its broadest form allows people to say what’s on their mind. Modern chaplaincy has evolved to be a healthcare profession that embraces diversity and is broad in its outlook and support of people who hold a variety of faith and beliefs.”

We are featuring this article as part of the Dying Matters Awareness Week 2021 - being in a good place to die. Karen goes on to say that, “Many patients I support will say that they are not religious , but say prayers, believe in ‘something’ and are not without faith. It’s an interesting debate and discussion as to what ‘non-religious’ means to people. My experience is that , as a chaplain, I am welcomed in to someone’s personal space at the end of life when big questions are suddenly overwhelming. Chaplains have the resources and skills to offer spiritual are to patients in spiritual distress and we do that with care, compassion and acceptance.”

What a unique and profound opportunity those who serves as chaplains have…. and Karen goes on the say that in some way we can all be part of this vital work, by having conversations about death and dying with those we love and those we serve in our churches. Karen commends the resources of Dying Matters to us, saying:

“Dying Matters Week is an opportunity to be thankful for spiritual care teams around the country who have been part of wider teams in palliative care, supporting staff as well as patients and their families”

— says Karen Murphy, President of the Association of Hospice and Palliative Care Chaplains

(photo above from the Dying Matters resource pack and cover photo courtesy of Toa Heftiba at Unsplash)

DYING MATTERS AWARENESS WEEK 2021 - BEING IN A GOOD PLACE TO DIE - FIND OUT MORE HERE

For further information about chaplaincy and spiritual care provision in palliative care, please visit the AHPCC and UKBHC websites.

"Talking about death doesn’t bring death closer. It’s about planning for life, helping us make the most of the time that we have...."

“Talking about death doesn’t bring death closer. It’s about planning for life, helping us make the most of the time that we have….”, so a leaflet produced by Dying Matters says…

Since the Dying Matters Coalition was set up in 2009, they’ve created a wide range of resources to help people start conversations about dying, death and bereavement. These have been a great success and used by a host of different organisations including hospices, hospitals, care homes, community centres, financial advisers and funeral directors have all used them to successfully raise awareness in their area.

We all need a bit of help and support to enable us to raise conversations about death and dying - for our own death, the death and dying those we love or those we minister to in our churches. Help is at hand! Dying Matters have produced a range of useful, sensitive and informative pamphlets to support us in doing this.

Why we need to talk more about death and dying

We are featuring these resources and sharing them with you as part of Dying Matters Awareness Week 2021 - Being in a good place to die. You can find out more about the important work of this Hospice UK led coalition and how we can get involved HERE.

(photo above from Dying Matters resource pack and cover photo courtesy of Harli Marten at Unsplash)

Issues facing hospices across the UK...

I know that many of us will be aware of the issues facing hospices across the UK, after what has been one of the most challenging years for the palliative care sector. Helping our local hospices, where we can, and joining in the conversations about death and dying are all ways we can support the vital work of the hospice movement.

Karen Murphy, President of the Association of Hospice and Palliative Care Chaplains, says, “Hospice and palliative care has continued to support patients and families over the past year, but under difficult and challenging circumstance to keep everyone safe.” Karen, who is also Chaplain and Spiritual Lead, Weston Hospicecare, goes on to say that, “Sadly along the way , I am aware of at least 9 hospice chaplaincy posts lost during the pandemic due to financial constraints. As hospices are usually independent charities, fund raising and giving generally ground to a halt, requiring hospices to looks at financial priorities. It was greatly saddening to hear of these losses which will have a significant impact on patient care and support. The Association of Hospice and Palliaitive care Chaplains has been involved in a European study of chaplaincy activity during the pandemic and the finding are now available in The Journal of Pastoral Care and Counselling. The study demonstrates just how hard chaplaincy has worked to support so many people, and how integral our work is to the whole team.”

Perhaps you could get in touch with the hospice in your area and find out how you can help - maybe through volunteering, making donations of items to one of their shops or by giving a financial donation or through joining in one of their fundraising events. I have been able to pass on some nearly new clothes and great books to the Dorothy House Hospice shop in my town and do some fundraising for the Sue Ryder Manorlands Hospice where my friend works as a chaplain. I wonder what you could do?

We are sharing this news as part of the Awareness Week for Dying Matters ‘being in a good place to die’ - there are all sorts of support materials and resources to help us to think about and talk about palliative care and supporting the bereaved which you can download HERE.

(photo above from Dying Matters resource pack and cover photo courtesy of Bret Kavanaugh at Unsplash)

"Talking about death is a taboo subject that people shy away from or feel anxious about..."

“Talking about death is a taboo subject that people shy away from or feel anxious about", says our Secretary for Healthcare Chaplaincy, Mark Newitt. This is something that is often all too true, so the Hospice UK led coalition of organisations (Dying Matters) encourage us to take part in an Awareness Week, during this week, to help to raise the profile of Dying Matters; they want to enable us to have the confidence and courage to start conversations with those in our families and churches and for those we minister to.

“Dying Matters Awareness Week is a fantastic opportunity to open up the conversation around death, dying and bereavement and I encourage you to look at the resources available on the Dying Matters website.”

— says Rev Dr Mark Newitt, Secretary for Healthcare Chaplaincy, Free Churches

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE VITAL WORK OF DYING MATTERS AND

HOW TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT DEATH AND DYING

An introduction to Dying Matters Awareness Week - 10-16 May 2021

Each year, the Hospice UK led coalition of organisations, Dying Matters, encourage us to get involved in an Awareness Week in May, for families, churches, groups and networks to get involved with. The theme is different each year - for example, last year it was ‘Dying to be heard’. This year the theme is ‘Being in a good place to die’ and seeks to raise awareness and start conversations about how and where we end our days. It is a chance for coalition partners, organisations and individuals to come together and open up the conversation around death, dying and bereavement.

The resources and support materials are available for us to access all year round, but the Awareness Week helps to give us a special time to focus on these important matters. There is a lot of support for the work of Dying Matters from across many different groups, carers, chaplains and healthcare professionals, especially those working in the field of palliative care.

Karen Murphy, President of the Association of Hospice and Palliative Care Chaplains, offers us a thought-provoking and timely update on the challenges and opportunities in the support and spiritual care of the dying and the bereaved, “Hospice and palliative care has continued to support patients and families over the past year, but under difficult and challenging circumstance to keep everyone safe. Chaplaincy teams have played a major role in the Covid 19 response to ensuring people have access to quality spiritual care.”

Karen goes on to say that, “Dying Matters Week is an opportunity to be thankful for spiritual care teams around the country who have been part of wider teams in palliative care, supporting staff as well as patients and their families.”

You can download lots of free resources to help you, your church and your family start conversations about death and dying, which we know is a difficult topic to know how to broach - we hope and pray that during this Awareness Week, you will feel encouraged and enabled to being these conversations and work towards helping those we love or those we minister to to be ‘in a good place to die’.

ACCESS THE RESOURCES HERE

(photo above and cover photo from the Dying Matters Awareness Week 2021 Resource Pack)