Life and Death Matters

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Life and Death Matters

Healthcare education and resources for educators, caregivers and nurses. Supporting excellence in en

Developers of engaging, interactive, creative hospice, palliative and end-of-life care educational resources for practical nurses and personal support workers/nursing assistants. We have a particular interest in assisting practical nurses, health care workers and family caregivers and have assembled a family of educational resources for these students:

"Essentials in Hospice and Palliative Care: A Practical Resource for Every Nurse" is tailored specifically to practical nurses learning to provide care for the dying. In Canada, we have a text "Integrating a Palliative Approach: Essentials for Personal Support Workers"
For nursing assistants and their counterparts in the USA, we have "Integrating a Palliative Approach: Essentials for Nursing Assistants"

We strive to make learning interesting and teaching easier. Which is why we developed companion workbooks, free podcasts and free videos for students, and a free Instructor's Guide to help integrate this content into core curriculum. And of course, we will come to you with face to face presentations and workshops... let's talk.

11/14/2025

🕊️ Grief Isn’t About Letting Go - It’s About Learning to Live With What’s Missing

Grief is not a moment, it’s a relationship. An unheard and disruptive ongoing process of adapting to loss - making space for sorrow and memory.

West Coast musician Shari Ulrich captured this beautifully in her song “Making Friends with Gone,” written during a time of personal loss. This is special to Life and Death Matters as Shari sang it at the memorial for Kath's mother.

Here’s an excerpt:
“Just a little longer now
I don’t want to go to bed
Maybe just another walk
Down Cooper Road instead.
If anybody asks you just how I’m getting on
Tell them I’m still making friends with gone.”

💛 For those grieving, this poem is a remonder that grief is not about moving on. It’s about making friends with gone.

👂 Listen to Shari singing the full poem: Link in comments👇

11/13/2025

🎖️ Throwback to a Truly Special Moment
When Kath and Ted Murray were awarded the King Charles III Coronation Medal for their incredible contributions to palliative care education in Canada, the wave of heartfelt congratulations was unforgettable.

Here's one of the messages from Krista Livingston Clark:

“Congratulations Kath and Ted! I can’t think of two more deserving recipients! Your leadership and development of quality and informed palliative curriculum for Health Care educators in Canada is outstanding!”

For decades, Kath and Ted have poured their hearts into building compassionate, practical, and deeply human palliative education. This honour was more than a medal, it was a moment to pause and celebrate the impact they’ve had on care providers, educators, and families across the country.

11/12/2025

📊 Caregiving in Canada: By the Numbers, From the Heart

Caregiving isn’t a niche issue—it’s a constant in Canadians’ lives. It’s happening in every community, every generation, every walk of life.

At the Canadian Caregiver Summit 2025, we heard the numbers that tell a powerful story:

- 1 in 4 caregivers is racialized and lives in a household earning less than $40K
- 1 in 5 was born outside of Canada
- 1 in 10 identifies as LGBTQ2S+ and is between the ages of 18–24
- 💰 $97 billion in unpaid caregiving happens every year in Canada

That’s you. Your daughter. Your co-worker. Your neighbour. Your mother.

Caregiving is everywhere—and it deserves recognition, support, and action.

,

11/12/2025

🧠 Loss is Universal - Grief Deserves Support

Loss comes in many forms: the death of a loved one, the loss of health, identity, connection, or role. And with each loss, grief follows - not as a weakness, but as a natural, adaptive response.

At Life and Death Matters, we recognize the basic truths about loss and grief and understanding these truths helps to offer better support and deeper compassion.

• Loss is natural. Everyone experiences loss as part of being human.
• Grief is a response to loss and includes the ways people cope with the changes that occur when there are multiple losses.
• Grief is a natural, healthy response to loss that helps people adapt to a constantly changing world.
• Grief has many possible ways.
• Denial can be an effective way to cope with overwhelming grief.
• Hope is a wish for something that is important to the person.

🕯️ Don’t miss the powerful webinar with Kath and Ted Murray where they share their personal expereineces grief and connection - “The Lived Experience of Grief: Living with Grief, Loss, and the Need for Connection”
🗓 November 18, 4 PM EST / 1 PM PST
💬 Explore how grief evolves and becomes part of life, the impact of disenfranchised grief, and ways to support others through presence, compassion, and culturally safe care.
📌 Register now: Link in comments

11/11/2025

🕯️Remembrance Day: Their Dedication, Our Freedom

Each year on November 11th, Canadians gather in silence to honour the fallen, the veterans, and all who served in war and peacekeeping. At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we remember lives lost, families changed, and futures shaped by service.

Life and Death Matters honours those who gave their lives to serve their country and those who continue to carry the legacy of courage, sacrifice, and peace.

🎥 Watch this moving tribute reminding us why remembrance matters: https://f.mtr.cool/ybqjmvsuck
🔗 Learn more: https://f.mtr.cool/pfpjxirast

11/10/2025

🧭 Maria’s Reflections from the Canadian Caregiver Summit 2025

What an incredible two days of sharing, learning, and acting. This year’s “Act on Care” summit brought together voices from across Canada—caregivers, advocates, educators, and leaders—each with stories of joy, struggle, triumph, and loss.

We heard about the release of the report “A National Caregiving Strategy for Canada”, and explored its five foundational pillars:
1. Improve supports, programs, and services for caregivers
2. Support caregivers in work and education
3. Improve financial support for care recipients
4. Build a sustainable care provider workforce
5. Show leadership and recognition

From the insight of André Picard, award-winning journalist and care provider, to the passion of Arlene Dickinson, entrepreneur and caregiver, and the powerful words of Frederica Pottinger, the summit inspired a collective call to action.

“Imagine a Canada where no caregiver has to choose between the health of the carer and those they are caring for.”
—Liv Mendelson, CEO, Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence

At Life and Death Matters, we’re committed to advancing Pillars 2, 4, and 5—because as Frederica reminded us:
“The conditions of work are the conditions of care.”

11/10/2025

💙 Celebrating Nurse Practitioners Week | November 10–16, 2025

This week, Life and Death Matters proudly joins the national celebration of Nurse Practitioners Week - honouring the dedication, expertise, and leadership of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) across Canada.

NPs use their clinical training to diagnose, prescribe, and treat patients - often serving as primary care providers, leading independent practices, and collaborating within multidisciplinary teams. Their broad scope of practice enhances access to care and allows them to deliver comprehensive, person-centred services.

From health promotion and disease prevention to acute and specialized care, NPs partner with patients to improve health outcomes and promote equity in communities across the country. Their presence is especially vital in hospice and palliative care, where compassion and clinical excellence go hand in hand.

Modernized provincial and federal policies that support NP utilization are key to building a more accessible, efficient, and high-quality healthcare system for all Canadians.

To every NP: thank you for your care, your courage, and your commitment to making a difference.

11/06/2025

🕯️ New Blog: Holding More Than Absence
This month at Life and Death Matters, we’re focusing on Grief and Bereavement Support and Maria Panzera Rugg’s latest blog offers a deeply personal and powerful reflection on how grief can continue to shape our lives.

In Holding More Than Absence: My Journey With Loss and Continuing Bonds, Maria explores how grief evolves over time, drawing on continuing bonds theory and her own experiences with the deaths of Mama Adele, Dr. Christine Newman, her father Giuseppe Panzera, and the many patients and families she’s cared for.

💬 “Grief becomes not merely an absence, but a form of presence—with you, through you, in continual becoming.”

🔗 Read the full story: https://f.mtr.cool/uvixfuslcq

11/04/2025

📣 New Webinar – The Lived Experience of Grief: Living with Grief, Loss, and the Need for Connection

In honour of National Grief and Bereavement Day, join us for a powerful and deeply personal webinar with Kath and Ted Murray, co-founders of Life and Death Matters. For the first time, they’ll publicly share their experience of grief following the death of their son Geordie - and how it continues to shape their lives and work in hospice and palliative care.

This session is especially meaningful for PSWs and care providers who walk alongside grieving individuals and families every day.

💬 Learning Outcomes:
- Understand grief as an evolving experience that affects every part of life over time
- Recognize mourning as both personal and social—shaped by culture, relationships, and community
- Explore how disenfranchised grief impacts those whose losses may not be socially acknowledged
- Reflect on practical ways to support yourself and others through compassion, presence, and culturally safe communication

🗓 November 18, 2025 | ⏰ 4 PM Eastern / 1 PM Pacific

🔗 Register now and be part of this heartfelt conversation. Link in comments.

11/03/2025

Honouring Caregivers in Quebec: United by and for Care

This week, we join communities across Quebec in marking Semaine nationale des personnes proches aidantes - National Caregivers Week, held this year from November 2 to 8, 2025.

At Life and Death Matters, we recognize the invisible strength and quiet dedication of caregivers - those who walk alongside loved ones through illness, aging, and end-of-life journeys. Whether they are family members, friends, or neighbours, caregivers offer presence, patience, and love in ways that often go unseen.

This year’s theme, “Unis par & pour les proches aidants” (United by and for caregivers), reminds us that caregiving is not a solitary act, it’s a shared responsibility. We are united by caregivers, whose stories inspire and transform us. And we are united for caregivers, because every kind word, every moment of listening, every gesture of support makes a difference.

In Quebec, nearly one in four people is a caregiver. Their contributions are essential to the health and wellbeing of our communities and yet many face this role without recognition or adequate support.

Let’s change that. Let’s listen, acknowledge, and act.

To all caregivers: We see you. We honour your care. And we are here to walk with you.

10/31/2025

🎥 Missed our webinar on pediatric hospice palliative care? We've got you covered!

If you weren’t able to join us live for 'Every Child, Every Family, Every Community: Inclusive Approaches to Pediatric Hospice Palliative Care', you can still catch the full recording and explore the insights shared by Maria Panzera Rugg, RN, BScN, MN, ACNP (Cert), CHPCN(C), CHE.

This session is packed with practical information and strategies for PSWs, nurses, and educators, including:
🧠 A clear understanding of pediatric palliative care
🏥 Ontario’s new model: Palliative Pediatric Care in All Settings
💬 Tips for emotional safety, cultural humility, and family-centred support
🫱 Strategies to use in caring for a child, the family and the community.

👉 Watch the recording: https://f.mtr.cool/esxccxjndj

10/30/2025

Honouring Service, Celebrating Compassion

Maria, Hospice and Palliative Care Nurse Educator at Life and Death Matters, was deeply honoured to receive the Meritorious Service to Humanity award from the Military Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem, recognising her 35 years of dedicated service to Hospice Palliative Care in Ontario.

“It was a humbling experience to stand among such a respected group of humanitarians,” Maria shared. “I’m filled with gratitude for this recognition and for the incredible work the Order does to support hospice and palliative care around the world.”

We extend heartfelt congratulations to all the honourees, and special thanks to St. Lazarus Canada for their ongoing commitment to compassionate care and global impact.

Address

2958 Lamont Road
Saanichton, BC
V8M1W5

Telephone

+12506526781

Website

https://beacons.ai/lifeanddeathmatters

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