Joint conference success for the second year running

A pioneering study day organised jointly by St Catherine’s Hospice and Derian’s House Children’s Hospice has been hailed a success.
The Living Through Loss conference took place at St Catherine’s on Friday May 17th, during this year’s Dying Matters Awareness Week.

It was the second consecutive year the two hospices worked together to organise the event, which this year featured speakers and workshops focused around the topic of grief and loss for young adults with life-limiting illnesses.
Participants – who included district nurses, GPs, specialist nurses, social workers and allied health professionals – played an active role in the day thanks to a series of afternoon workshops, and the day ended with a lively question and answers session around some of the issues raised and discussed at the conference.
Fiona Carrier, a nurse at St Andrew’s Children’s Hospice in Grimsby, said she found the day extremely useful.

“It has been very informative – a real eye-opener,” she said.
“The presentations and discussions really made me think about certain issues involved in that transitional period between childhood and adulthood – examining how I think and feel both as a professional, but also as an individual.
“It has been very useful to share information and experiences between adult and children’s hospices which will help us work more effectively together to make the transition between the two as smooth as possible.”
Lesley Cowing, family support worker at Pendleside Hospice for adults, said she had found the conference ‘interesting and thought-provoking’.

She said: “The sessions have helped me see things from many different aspects, and then allowed me relate them back to my specific area and role. It brought many ideas to the forefront and raised awareness of some of the issues to consider in my position going forward.”
Mary Tuffin, a volunteer counsellor at Eden Valley Hospice in Carlisle, said she found the day very worthwhile and added: “The study day was very lively, engaging and inclusive.”

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