Free support resources
Compassion in Dying can help you prepare for the end of life. How to talk about it, plan for it, and record your wishes.
They can support you to plan for your treatment and care, in case a time comes when you can’t make decisions. This helps you get the support that’s right for you, when you need it. When what matters most to you is known and recorded, it makes it easier for your family, friends and healthcare professionals to follow your wishes, giving everyone peace of mind.
They also help people through their free information line, publications and resources, and through their work with diverse communities. They specialise in supporting people to make Advance Decisions (‘Living Wills’) and to talk about their goals and priorities when living with a life-changing illness. Their free MyDecisions website helps people to record their wishes for care in a legally binding way.
Cruse Bereavement Care is the leading national charity for bereaved people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Cruse Bereavement Care Freephone National Helpline is staffed by trained bereavement volunteers, who offer emotional support to anyone affected by bereavement.
They will give you space to talk about your bereavement and how you’ve been coping. Their volunteers are completely non-judgemental and won’t share what you’ve told them with anyone else, except in certain circumstances.
For people who feel they would like more in depth support, Cruse offer a series of bereavement support sessions (usually six) with one of their fully-trained bereavement volunteers. The sessions can take place on the phone, via video-conference or in person.
You can call them on 0808 808 1677 or click on their logo to visit the website.
The Good Grief Trust exists to help all those suffering grief in the UK. Their aim is to find the bereaved, acknowledge their grief and provide reassurance, a virtual hand of friendship and ongoing support
Their vision is to bring all bereavement services together around the country, to ensure that everyone receives the support they need to move forward with their lives
With over half a million deaths in the uk every year, at some time in our lives ALL of us will be affected by grief and none of us know how we will react to the death of someone close until it happens.
They aim to develop the UK’s leading fully comprehensive online bereavement support website, to provide support both for the bereaved, whether you have lost a partner, child, parent, grandparent, sibling or friend and for the health professionals who support them.
Kicked the bucket. Croaking it. Pushing-up daisies. Passed over, on, away.
The D-word. We have no shortage of names for it, but when faced with death we are often lost for words.
Our superstitions, fears about dying and the discomfort we feel, affect our approach and experiences of the end of life. We reckon it's time for an upgrade on how we go about our dying matters.
Death is often over medicalised and institutionalised in Australia and the health care system does not harness the real value of involving family and friends in the process. Because of the lack of options, knowledge, capacity and decision making power, there are often negative repercussions for the person dying and those around them.
Running since May 2018, TNN has hosted over 200 peer-to-peer support sessions aimed at normalising the conversations around grief. Connecting more than 1000 people from all over the world, 2020 saw the charity’s biggest growth year to date- with plans to add further mental health and grief groups to their arsenal soon.
Phones for Patients want to help by collecting donated mobile devices, chargers and cables, preparing them and then deploying them to participating NHS organisations and care homes (for free) for their patients and residents to be able to remain in contact with their loved ones during their stay.
By preparing, they mean securing, centrally managing, and deploying communication and other apps to these devices. In addition, they’re currently working with NHS organisations to develop best practices around these use cases and sharing these with participating organisations.
They are doing this project pro-bono and the team at Phones for Patients are dedicating their time to make this happen. They are committed to making a positive difference to the lives of patients and their loved ones.
They have already secured many device donations, with more being pledged each day.
If you know someone in a care setting who needs a device, simply click on their logo and apply via the website.
UK Charity Sue Ryder supports people through the most difficult times of their lives. Whether that's a terminal illness, the loss of a loved one or a neurological condition. Their doctors, nurses and carers give people the compassion and expert care they need to help them live the best life they possibly can.
Whether people are in hospice for a short stay before going home, or because they are at the very end of their life, Sue Ryder nurses go the extra mile to listen to what's important to people and provide the wrap-around care each person needs to enjoy the best quality of life they can.
Community palliative nursing
Sue Ryder's community palliative care nurses are there to provide specialist care and support to people in their own homes who have been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness such as cancer, heart disease or a lung condition.
All nurses have specialist knowledge and experience in palliative care and are expert in managing complex symptoms. They also go the extra mile to support people and their families with the practical and emotional challenges they may face.
Working in partnership with the NHS, Sue Ryders expert nurses take time to ensure that people are listened to and supported, that their health and wider needs are met, and that they feel safe and in control.
The Heart of Hospice is a group of projects designed to educate, encourage, and support anyone who needs information about end of life care. Their mission has always been to enhance the hospice experience for patients, caregivers, volunteers, and hospice professionals.
Mary M. McCambridge (Mary Mac), a Grief and Bereavement Specialist, Executive Coach, Speaker and Award-Winning Author of several works in her field, who established the Foundation for Grieving Children, Inc., her podcast, The Mary Mac Show, lends over 35 years' experience to comfort and educate those grieving the death of a loved one. Her show is recognized among the 10 Best Podcasts on Grief and Bereavement by several organizations and ranked among the top 10% of all podcasts worldwide.
The ‘D’ Word is the UK’s only weekly internet radio show that has Dementia as its focus. After spending two years managing activity groups for the Alzheimer's Society host Pete Hill approached UK Health Radio with the idea of presenting a weekly show on Dementia. Since then the programme has gone from strength to strength covering a wide variety of dementia related topics featuring guests from all over the world. UK Health Radio currently has a monthly listening audience of over one million.