This Dying Matters Awareness Week (14-20 May), a coalition including charities, care homes, hospices, GPs, funeral directors and legal and financial organisations, have released a survey results showing that Brits are not comfortable discussing dying, death and bereavement – and this means that people are risking not having their final requests met, and even leaving their loved ones in a mess. Decisions that affect the end of your life are extremely important, not only for you but for those around you – yet it seems that Brits are just too uncomfortable to discuss them, even though the overwhelming majority of GPs say that discussing dying makes it easier when the time comes.
Taking small actions, such as talking to those close to you about your wishes, writing a will or registering for organ donation can make a big difference – but why is dying and death such an uncomfortable topic?
Joining us to discuss this further is Eve Richardson, Chief Executive of the National Council for Palliative Care and the Dying Matters Coalition.