Welcome to Thursdays@3 our regular series of conversations with people living and working at the end of life.

Our conversation today takes us to Cairns to meet, among many other achievements, one of the first Aboriginal doctors in Australia, Dr Mark Wenitong.

Press play to join this special Reconciliation Week conversation…

Show notes and more info:

• Learn more about Mark’s research into culturally safe, trauma-informed approach to cognitive impairment and dementia HERE

• Explore PCA’s resources for Aboriginal and Tores Strait Islander Peoples HERE

Thank you for tuning into Thursdays@3 whether that’s via PCA socials or Spotify and engaging in ‘matters of life and death’.

Welcome to Thursdays@3 our regular series of conversations with people living and working at the end of life.

Today, we are spending some time with a Queensland based service supporting parents, health professionals, and the wider community through the distress, grief, and confusion that can grow when a baby or child dies.

For more than a decade, Precious Wings has been at work with bereaved parents helping them navigate their grief and fostering more supportive health and community environments.

Kerry Gordon is the Founder and CEO, doing this work in memory of her little boy Toby.

Since Precious Wings launched in 2013 it has become an embed part of Queensland Health and the states approach to paediatric palliative care - Precious Wings is at work in 62 hospitals across Queensland and Northern NSW – not to mention many funeral homes, hospices, and nursing services,

Click play to meet Kerry and be inspired by her passion and work…

Show notes and more info:

• Explore the resources, support and advice of Precious Wings HERE

• Donate to Precious Wings HERE

Welcome to Thursdays@3 our regular series of conversations with people living and working at the end of life.

Today’s conversation centres on the role of carers – the family and friends who lean in to support a loved one living through terminal illness.

It’s care that can last years, months, weeks before someone dies – important work that often allows people to be looked after at home and fulfill their end of life wishes.

While caring for someone who is dying can be very rewarding – it can also be mixed with significant emotion, stress, and challenges.

CarerHelp is funded by the Australian Government and pulls together the wisdom of St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, Flinders University, and Carers Australia.

CarerHelp provides information and resources to support carers with their important work.

In this episode, we meet a member of the CarerHelp Project Team - Associate Professor Mark Boughey, who is also Deputy Director of the Centre for Palliative Care and Director of Palliative Medicine at St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne.

Mark also brings his own personal experience as a carer for his partner, Len.

Click play to spend some time with one of the great men of palliative care…

More info and show notes:

• Explore the CarerHelp resources and advice HERE

Today our conversation takes us to Western Australia to meet Dr Jonathan Ramachenderan – a GP whose career and work has centred around pain medicine and palliative care, but he also has a particular interest in the wellbeing of those he works with.

Click play to join this thoughtful conversation.

Show notes and more information:

• Watch Jonathan’s TED x Talk – HERE

• Read Jonathan’s blog – HERE

• PCA Self Care Matters tools - HERE

Thank you to you for tuning into Thursdays@3 whether that’s via PCA socials or Spotify and engaging in ‘matters of life and death’.

Today’s episode takes us to the US to meet the people behind the Palliative Story Exchange – which will be one of the highlights National Palliative Care Week this May.

Alexis Drutchas is a palliative care physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Richard Leiter is palliative care physician, writer, and researcher at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

The third amigo in the Story Exchange team is Rachel Rusch, who is a palliative care social worker, educator, and researcher at the Children's Hospital Colorado and an Assistant Professor of Paediatric Palliative Medicine at the University of Colorado. Rachel had to skip our chat to look after her sick toddler.

Both Alexis and Ricky joined us from Boston.

Click play to learn more about The Palliative Story Exchange and the power of sharing stories.

Welcome to Thursdays@3 our regular series of conversations with people living and working at the end of life.

Today’s conversation takes us to the UK to meet Professor Brian Dolan, who is one of our keynote speakers at the Oceanic Palliative Care Conference this September in Brisbane.

Brian has a 30 plus year career in various nursing, leadership, academic and consulting roles focusing on system redesign, culture change and patient flow.

He is Director of Health Service 360, which was founded in 2001 with fellow nurse Lynda Holt to change and improve health systems and develop leaders.

He is also one of the people behind social movements like the Last 1000 Days and End PJ Paralysis, and in 2019 got the Queen’s attention for his services to nursing and emergency care and was awarded an OBE.

Click play to join this warm wise conversation with Brian.

Show notes and more info:

• Registrations for 25OPCC

• Health Service 360

• Last 1000 Days

• End PJ Paralysis

Thank you to you for tuning into Thursdays@3 and engaging in ‘matters of life and death’.

You will find advice, tools, and support at the Palliative Care Australia website where you can also make a donation to support our work.

Today’s conversation takes us to Tasmania, to meet the cheerleader of a global kindness charity that is at work within our palliative care community

Sarah De Jonge, was nominated as Tasmanian of the Year this year for her work as the leader of 1000 Hearts.

1000 Hearts and its community of crafters and sewers around the world make and distribute little love bombs – little felt pocket hearts that can be sent to anyone as an act of kindness, a show of support or appreciation, or a message of love and hope.

PCA and 1000 Hearts are launching a partnership and encouraging people to make and distribute orange pocket hearts to those working or volunteering in palliative care or people and families receiving palliative care.

Click play to join this conversation with Sarah De Jong, the Founder of Tasmanian based global kindness charity 1000 Hearts.

More information and show notes:

Purchase your Palliative Care Pocket Hearts

Explore the 1000 Hearts website

Today we’re off to the centre of Australia, a place as tough and as beautiful as the person we are meeting. Jodie Clarkson is a mum, and a teacher – and she has been living with brain cancer since 2017 – 8 years.

When we spoke, Jodie was just about to travel to Gosford in New South Wales to receive radiation therapy.

Click play to join the conversation.

Jodie has also shared her story as part of our People of Palliative Care series HERE and is a member of PCA’s National Register of Palliative Care Consumers and Carers and is available to help shape policy and service delivery, find out more HERE.

Thank you for tuning into Thursdays@3 whether that’s via PCA socials or Spotify, and engaging in ‘matters of life and death’.

You will find advice, tools, and support at the Palliative Care Australia website where you can also make a donation to support our work.

Palliative Care Australia and our members are making access to palliative care an election issue!

Yep - we are competing with some other big issues for attention, but few issues will touch every family the way access to palliative care does.

Jean Kittson, one of Australia's most loved performers shares her family's trauma in trying to access palliative care as a way of raising awareness.

Hit play to listen to Jean's deeply personal story.

To find out more, visit our federal election campaign website.

Welcome to Thursdays@3 our regular series of conversations with people living and working at the end of life.

Today a connection with our friends in South Africa, and a palliative care leader who is having a global impact - Joan Marston.

Joan is a nurse and midwife who has worked in hospice and palliative care since 1989 at a local, national and international level.

Since 1998, Joan has specialised in palliative care for children, setting up the Sunflower Children’s Hospice in South Africa.

Working at the national level, Joan played a key role in developing South Africa’s national children’s palliative care program, during that time, she also co-founded and became the first chair and CEO of the International Children’s Palliative Care Network.

These days Joan plays a leadership role in the delivery of palliative care in the midst of humanitarian crises and in 2016, she co-founded Palliative Care in Humanitarian Aid Situations and Emergencies.

Joan remains active in paediatric palliative care education across many countries and earlier this year was on the Gold Coast for the Paediatric Palliative Care Symposium hosted by the Quality of Care Collaborative Australia.

Click play to join the conversation.

More information and show notes:

Paediatric Palliative Care National Action Plan – HERE

Sunflower Children’s Hospice – HERE

Association of Palliative Care Centres of South Africa – HERE

International Children’s Palliative Care Network – HERE

Palliative Care in Humanitarian Aid Situations and Emergencies – HERE

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross Foundation - HERE

Thank you for tuning into Thursdays@3 whether that’s via PCA socials or Spotify and engaging in ‘matters of life and death’.