Wakefield Hospice, Mid Yorks NHS Trust, Prince of Wales Hospice, Kirkwood and Age UK join forces to drive Dying Matters campaign

Organised by Hospice UK and taking place between May 6-12, Dying Matters Week is an annual campaign dedicated to creating a culture in which people are comfortable talking about death, dying and grief.

This year’s theme is ‘The way we talk about Dying Matters’, focusing on the specific language that is used to talk about death and dying, especially between patients and their carers, families and healthcare professionals. By tackling taboos, confusion and a lack of confidence in discussing death and dying, the campaign aims to create a better end of life care for those with terminal illnesses.

To share information on this subject, and to give the public an opportunity to talk about it with healthcare professionals, the group of organisations will be running pop-up stalls throughout the week and are keen for people to come along and learn more about the language used around death and dying. The stalls will be at the following times and places:

Tuesday, May 7 from 10am-3pm at Pontefract Hospital foyer.

Wednesday, May 8 from 10am-3pm, Dewsbury and District Hospital foyer.

Thursday, May 9 from 1-am-noon, Castleford Indoor Market Hub, unit 7.

Thursday, May 9 from 10am at The Ridings Shopping Centre, first floor.

Friday, May 10 from 6pm-8pm at Wheldon Road (Castleford Tigers ground).

Friday, May, 10 from 10am-3pm, Pinderfields Hospital foyer.

Saturday, May 11 from 10am-12noon, at Junction 32 Shopping Outlet.

Speaking about the collaboration, Janet Millard, Wakefield Hospice’s Director of Clinical Services said: “We are delighted to be teaming up with local care organisations to share information across our local community about death and dying, and promote positive conversations on these important topics.

“Many people still struggle to talk about death, and Dying Matters Week provides a fantastic opportunity to encourage more discussions around this important topic, and we look forward to meeting the public at our pop up stalls throughout the week to share more information about language and general hospice care.”

Farzana Aziz, Outreach Manager at Wakefield Hospice added: “Speaking about death and dying is still a challenging subject for many people across our communities yet it is such an important topic to be able to talk about openly with friends and loved ones.

“We are looking forward to a great week of conversations, and also having the opportunity to dispel myths about hospice care too.”

To find out more about the Dying Matters campaign, visit www.hospiceuk.org.