May 19, 2023

“Talking about death won’t kill you” – important film captures palliative care reality

Screenshot 2023-05-19 123203
Live the Life You Please will be officially launched at the Parliament House theatre in Canberra. [Source: Live the Life You Please campaign]

A new documentary shedding light on the real and raw realities of palliative care premieres in theatres today.

Live the Life You Please, a documentary produced by Moonshine Agency, tells the personal stories of real people from across Australia and was created to help smash the taboos surrounding palliative care and the final chapter of life. 

A mixture of everyday people and health experts, voices in the documentary echo the same sentiment “talking about death won’t kill you”.

The biggest myth is — palliative care is only about pain relief when in reality, the earlier palliative care starts, the longer you live. 

Premiering today at the start of National Palliative Care Week, advocates are pushing open conversation around the reality of death to become better equipped to engage with life.

Juliane Samarra, a Palliative Care Nurse Practitioner understands the importance of talking about this topic. 

“We need to embrace death and dying as part of living. We need to be more comfortable talking about it and having those conversations so that we are more prepared when the time comes.”

Speaking on this week’s awareness campaign, #mattersoflifeanddeath, Camilla Rowland, Chief Executive Officer at Palliative Care Australia said it is a time to open the door on “the full scope and impact of palliative care and the quality of life it delivers.”

Palliative Care Nurses Australia also acknowledged the work done by nurses who significantly impact palliative care and its leadership every day while the world battles a global nursing workforce shortage and Australia’s ageing population requires increasing palliative care needs. 

To find out which local cinema is playing the documentary or to host a film event to watch and share the message about palliative care, visit livethelifeyouplease.com

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  1. I will watch with interest. Our journey of trying to gave both my parents die at home with us has been APPALLING thanks to the lack of services surrounding aged care and death support.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Should family be present when a palliative care plan is written?

  A palliative care plan can help people to live as fully and comfortably as possible as they approach the end of their life, and are a way to keep family and health professionals informed about the care the person expects to receive. Ideally, the plans are written when the person is well, where decisions... Read More

We Have The Right To Die With Dignity: “Assisted Dying Will Enhance Palliative Care”

With the upcoming bill for assisted dying to presented to the Victorian Government, there has been a large debate between supporters and critics over whether it should be passed.    Some sections are worried that assisted dying is a replacement for palliative care, which aims to ease the pain and suffering of those who do... Read More

70% of Australians have no end-of-life care plan: Why are so many leaving it to chance?

30% of advance care plans are either incomplete, invalid or not legally binding, according to new research. How can you ensure the choices you make about end-of-life care will actually be implemented when the time comes? Read More
Advertisement