The ‘lunch & learn’ series is aimed at managers, HR personnel or anyone supporting recently bereaved colleagues.

This year two new seminars; Communication Skills for Managers around Loss
and Grief and Thriving and staying healthy when working with grief and loss (self & organisational care for staff) have been included to address the wide-ranging impact of grief in the workplace. The series brochure, along with booking details is available HERE

In addition to the practical training on the day, participants will be given access to the Irish Hospice Foundation’s e-learning course to provide additional support material and an online training accompaniment to the seminar.

In further development of its guidance material on grief in the workplace, the Irish Hospice Foundation, along with Console will launch a Guide for employers on responding to suicide in the workplace’ on January 31st. The report will act as a practical resource to develop understanding and coping skills for organisations faced with the effects of suicide. Copies of the report and further information will be available on the Irish Hospice Foundation website after the official launch on the 31st.

Evidence of the physical effect of recent bereavement is also being increasingly built up. Research published last year by Buckley et al in the journal Heart, Lung & Circulation took the evidence further, highlighting changes in blood pressure post bereavement which could increase the risk of heart attack or stroke.

New research published last week by Mostofsky et al in the journal Circulation presents findings of a study surveying 1,985 people following hospital admission for heart attack. Of the cohort 270 had experienced the loss of a significant person within six months of their heart attack with 19 experiencing a cardiac incident within 24 hours of the loss of their loved one.

While the findings do not suggest that grief presents an acute or common risk for cardiac incident it does highlight an increased need for vigilance in the initial weeks and months following a bereavement and the need for sustained physical and emotional support for the grieving.

Therese Brady Library Collection

Happy New Year and welcome back to all our library users.

The Library space will be in use from 9 am until 4.30 pm on Friday January 13th so will not be accessible to visitors.

Library users needing to return books may still do so but study facilities and access to the collection will not be available during this time. Remember that you can reserve or renew library items through the online catalogue using your library reader and PIN number. If you need to borrow items or have any queries please email laura.rooneyferris@hospice-foundation.ie

The Therese Brady Library will be closed up for the holiday period from;   December 22  reopening on January 4th

Wishing you all a very happy festive season & peaceful New Year

Miller, J (1993) How Will I Get Through The Holidays; 12 Ideas For Those Whose Loved One has Died

Noel, B (2003) Surviving Holidays, Birthdays And Anniversaries; A Guide For Grieving During Special Occasions

Smith, H (1999) A Decembered Grief; Living With Loss
While Others Are Celebrating

These titles are available to borrow from the Therese Brady Library or can be purchased via online book vendors.

You can also watch this short video in which Dr Susan Delaney, Irish Hospice Foundation Bereavement services manager offers some words of advice to people concerned about facing christmas after bereavement

Author of the report, Marie Lynch; Development manager Irish Hospice Foundation (L) pictured with Irish Hospice Foundation CEO Sharon Foley

The Irish Hospice Foundation last week launched  its new report Primary Palliative Care in Ireland: Identifying improvements in primary care to support the care of those in their last year of life”.

The report, a collaboration between the Irish Hospice Foundation, the HSE and the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) is the work of the Primary Palliative Care Steering Committee which was established in 2010 to embed palliative care in primary care settings.

Speaking at the launch of the report, chairperson of the Primary Palliative Care Steering Committee Dr Paul Gregan, acknowledged that with more than 90% of the last year of life spent at home, care for patients nearing the end of their lives is provided predominantly in a primary care environment. A recording of report author Marie Lynch, development manager with the Irish Hospice Foundation addressing the launch is available HERE 

In order to identify supports and work towards a formal framework for primary palliative care the Primary Palliative Care (PPC) programme conducted a survey in ten HSE Local Health offices during 2010. Survey findings outlined in the report indicate areas for skills development, service development and education. Some of the key findings from respondents include;

•  A desire for enhanced communication skills for interacting with patients and families at end-of-life
• Development of patient information transfer systems
• Improvement of out of hours services
• Training in end-of-life care

Taking the survey findings on board the programme now moves into the implementation phase.

You can download the report in full HERE or obtain a hard copy by contacting the Irish Hospice Foundation  on 01 6755975

The workshops which address the spectrum of grief and loss are aimed at professionals and volunteers working in bereavement support and those wishing to learn more about bereavement theory and processes.

Workshops,  each of which are either one or two full day sessions run from January until late June with 23 titles being offered for the 2012 series. Topics covered range from suicide and addiction loss to communication skills for non clinical staff and creative arts in bereavement. Among the additions to the 2012 titles is ‘Grandparents grief; a complexity of losses‘ and ‘Final Journeys‘ a training input originally developed by the Hospice Friendly Hospitals programme to provide healthcare professionals with communication skills and insight to improve support and understanding around end-of-life care.

The workshops have accreditation of  two (for one day sessions) and six (for two days) CPD points from the Irish Association of Social Workers (IASW) and post registration category 1 from An Bord Altranis. Further details and booking enquiries can be made by contacting the Irish Hospice Foundation and the full brochure can be downloaded HERE

‘End-of-life Care ethics and law‘ written by Joan McCarthy, Mary Donnelly, Dolores Dooley, David Smith & Louise Campbell takes the eight modules of the ethical framework as its foundation.

The book draws on the body of research on the ethical issues in caring for patients at the end-of-life. It pulls together guidelines, codes of conduct, legal positions and bioethical perspectives to act as a multidisciplinary reference source for healthcare and legal professionals seeking clarification on these complex issues. Further details and context on the publication are available HERE.

The day also saw the launch of the ‘Think Ahead’ campaign which aims to provide the public with a method of discussing and recording their end of life preferences and wishes. You can find out more about the project and fill in your own wishes on the ‘Think Ahead’ form’ on the new site HERE

For anyone who wasnt in attendance at the forum in Croke park you can listen to podcasts from the morning here

• Interview with Taoiseach Enda Kenny on the ‘Think Ahead’ initiative HERE

• Recording of the morning session including the Mary Holland memorial lecture by Conor O Clery and response from Prof. Tom Inglis  – Listen HERE
  
• Recording of the Mid morning session featuring the launch of the ‘Think Ahead’ website and address by an Taoiseach Enda Kenny – HERE (Click ‘download’  then ‘download anyway’ when link opens)
• Recording of the afternoon session of the Forum on End-of-life Croke Park October 12 2011. Features feedback and audience questions on workshops, summary of the day by Ita Mangan and closing address by Irish Hospice Foundation board chairman Michael O Reilly. LISTEN HERE

Dignity By Design from Angela Mezzetti on Vimeo.

‘Dignity by Design’ highlights the importance of providing personal, private and dignified spaces for patients and families at end-of-life and the Irish Hospice Foundation’s Hospice Friendly Hospitals ‘Design and Dignity‘ initiative.

This short film has been entered in the Better Together video competition which is highlighting the work of charities to the public by inviting them to vote for featured videos. You can vote for and share the video HERE