We have proudly supported Hospice UK's annual Dying Matters Week, which took place over the course of last week. This important national campaign aims to open up conversations around death, dying, and bereavement, breaking down societal stigmas and empowering individuals to open up about their own experiences.

This year’s theme ‘The culture of dying matters’, provided opportunity for us to shine a light on the diverse cultural and faith-based approaches to death and dying within our local community. Understanding and respecting these different perspectives is crucial in providing compassionate and person-centred care to all those the hospice support.

Throughout Dying Matters Week, we shared insights and stories from a range of staff, volunteers, and families.

Rubina is a practicing Muslim, whose first experience of death and dying was when her mother died in 2016 at the hospice, and as part of the campaign reflected, “I’d never seen death before. I remember I cried, and when I cried I was worried it was embarrassing, but I learnt that nobody at the hospice is judgemental. They were like a family, and helped give me the bereavement support I needed.”

Rubina also shared how we accommodated her and her family’s beliefs throughout her mother’s stay at Bolton Hospice, remembering the prayer and ablution rooms, and how the 24/7 visiting hours meant family could always be around her.

Sister, Marc Greenfield, also shared how he and other staff at the hospice carefully consider different cultures and beliefs in their care.

“We take a really individual approach,” said Marc, “We really get to know every patient and their beliefs, so that we can understand what we can do to best support them. As staff we also have opportunities to attend trainings on different cultures and religions, and what we can do to accommodate that in the specialist care and support we provide here.”

We encouraged the local community to engage with the Dying Matters Week campaign and to consider starting conversations about their own wishes and beliefs. Talking about death doesn't have to be daunting; it can open up important conversations for ourselves and our loved ones.