In this story Nalani shares the feelings, questions and challenges she faced while supporting her sister through Cancer treatment and palliative care. She reminds us to make the most of the time they have left. Do something together, create special memories to cherish forever.
Read More
In this story, the Morley family share about the death of their six-year-old son Marc - who lost a battle with Lissencephaly, a rare genetic brain malformation. It wasn’t until the family engaged with palliative care, after avoiding it for so long, that they said: “We renamed palliative care to quality-of-life care, because for us, it was about living, not dying.”
Read More
Being the parent of a child with a life-limiting illness isn’t easy. But for Fiona, mother of nine-year-old Abi and 11-year-old Max, who lives with Batten Disease, “Bear Cottage is the only place we feel normal”. Despite their initial apprehensive about going, Bear Cottage far surpassed Fiona’s expectations: “It had everything we needed and more.”
Read More
In this story, we learn how the quality time Maddie – a Very Special Kids volunteer – spent with Marco, who has a rare genetic condition, and his younger brother Lucas, improved life for the whole family.
Read More
In this story, the grief of losing her daughter fuelled Suzanne Tunks’s desire to help other families in the toughest situations of their life.
Read More
In this inspiring story, 17-year-old Sam Hurst declined palliative chemotherapy to treat his bowel cancer, and instead made the most of his remaining months. In this story, Sam’s Lorna Hurst celebrates Sam’s short but vibrant life and shares the factors that contributed to him dying a good death.
Read More
Before Dianne Rich’s son Ashley died, he made it clear he didn’t want to be buried. “I want to be free.” It wasn’t until she discovered the Living Legacy Forest, a beautiful parkland section of the cemetery that had a lake, shrubs and boulders, rather than gravestones, that she knew what to do with Ashley’s ashes.
Read More
After a long fight with leukaemia, 19-year-old Shannon’s only wish was to spend her last days at home in her own bed, in rural Victoria. In this story, Shannon’s father Jeremy shared how his initial fear in caring for – due to limited after-hour specialist palliative care support – was calmed after receiving extraordinary support from a doctor, in the form…
Read More
In this story, Mary Brennan reflects on the death of her young son, Tom, who died of bone cancer in the early 1970s, when palliative care was unheard of. It was after Tom’s death that his brother Frank first considered studying medicine, and today works as a palliative care physician in Sydney.
Read MoreWe recognise and acknowledge those who are working through Sorry Business, Sad News, grief and bereavement and offer our condolences and support.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are advised that this website may contain images, videos and voices of people who have passed on. Some of the content and topics covered might also cause distress. You are welcome here, and we want you to feel safe and take care.
If you find that you need support please reach out to 13YARN on 13 92 76, Grief Australia, Grief Line on 1300 845 745, or Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Palliative Care Australia is located in Canberra. We acknowledge the traditional custodians of the surrounding land and waters, the Ngunnawal and Ngambri Peoples and pay our respects to Elders past and present. We extend that same respect and acknowledge the continuing cultures and contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples across Australia.
Close
