Teesside Hospice launches new event to get the region talking about dying

Teesside Hospice is hosting its first Dying Matters Conference this May, as it aims to get the region talking about death as part of a national campaign.

The event will take place at Teesside University Students Union on Tuesday 5th May, as part of Hospice UK’s Dying Matters Awareness Week.

The aim of the Conference is to offer people of Teesside the tools, resources and knowledge they need to open up conversations with their loved ones. The hospice teams will be joined by Macks Solicitors, David Knowles Funerals, celebrant Jen Parvin, Co-Op Funeral Care, Cygnet Law, Protex Financial, the local NHS organ donation team and more to offer attendees a broad range of information.

There will also be breakout sessions with local organisations to offer a more in-depth discussion around topics such as funeral planning.

Chloe McCormick, Outreach Nurse Practitioner at Teesside Hospice, said: “While it’s a part of everyone’s life, death is a topic that so many of us have difficulty discussing. In fact, research from Celebration Day shows that 27% of people find it hard to talk about death with family or friends – we want to change that with this event.

“It can be difficult to know where to start, but if we don’t try to talk about death and bereavement, it can be even harder to cope when we experience it.

“We’d love to welcome people and professionals from across the region to join us for this event to open up these conversations, and hopefully gain some knowledge and confidence from experts across the fields of funeral planning, will writing, life insurance and more.”

As part of its week of Dying Matters activity, the hospice will also be opening its doors on Northgate Road to offer the community an opportunity to take a look inside their local hospice.

Chloe continued: “We’d love to welcome everyone across Teesside, whether you’re familiar with our services or not, to take a look inside our hospice and learn more about the support we provide patients and families.

“We also want to bust the misconceptions around hospice care. While it’s important to talk about dying, we’re so much more than that and we hope that this open day will help to show that.”

Dying Matters Awareness Week is an annual national campaign from Hospice UK, which aims to break down stigmas around discussing death. This year’s theme focuses on starting conversations about dying with family, friends, colleagues and anyone else in your life.

Teesside Hospice’s Dying Matters Conference will take place from 11am – 2pm on Tuesday 5th May, with the Teesside Hospice Open Day following later in the week, from 11am – 2pm on Friday 8th May. To find out more and register your interest, visit www.teessidehospice.org/events.