COVID-19 forced everyone to consider and reflect on dying, death and bereavement in some shape or form. The pandemic also acted as a catalyst for significant change and innovation across palliative care and end of life experience.
In response, Nesta’s People Power Results team, Marie Curie and St Christopher’s worked in partnership, seeking to build a picture of what has changed during the pandemic and identify ways in which we can all contribute to better experiences of dying, death and bereavement in the future.
Our work was focused on understanding the policy context and technology landscape through desk-based research and a policy review. We also gathered insights through a series of conversations with 55 people working across health and care, the voluntary and community sectors, local and national leaders, as well as a number of people with lived experience.
Our approach culminated in hosting an open event online in September 2020, bringing together over 150 people with a broad range of perspectives and experiences to:
- Make connections, and share experiences of recent events
- Explore opportunities to reshape future experiences of death, dying and bereavement together and think creatively about what a better version of the future could look like
- Identify what we can do together and who we might connect with to create momentum and support us along the journey ahead