Hosted by The Patient | Carer Community at the School of Medicine, University of Leeds.

To be held at a private location

This Death Cafe has taken place

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About this Death Cafe

As you can imagine, much of the education of healthcare professionals involves learning how to help, heal and manage people with their health and wellbeing. Yet when we start to explore how to talk about living with terminal illness, end of life care, death and dying, then the conversation can become more difficult or even non-existant.

Starting with the members of the Patient | Carer Community this Death Cafe, inline with the model devised by Death Cafe, will offer a warm and friendly space for people to broach and explore life, death and mortality - all washed down with gallons of tea and plates stacked with cake!

Both Jools and Philip look forward to facilitating this conversation. We hope to make the Death Cafe a regular event that opens the conversation to healthcare professionals and a wider involvement from the public.

About The Patient | Carer Community at the School of Medicine, University of Leeds.

We are a community of patients and carers working in partnership with students, educators and clinicians, leading the way locally and nationally in educating the medical profession. We are making a difference by putting real stories at the heart of the curriculum so that patients, carers and their family members everywhere will experience the best possible healthcare.

Jools Symons - Patient and Public Involvement Manager at the Medical School.

My first experience of death was when my partner died at the tender age of 36 and I was 31. During that time I tried to be everything to everyone but I couldn't sustain the Superwoman act for too long... needless to say I soon crashed and burned!

So why hadn't I experience death before? Culture dictates that we don't talk about dying, as adults we fear it and in turn we shield our children from the truth.

I'd like to wag my finger at this taboo and talk about death, laugh, cry, share, celebrate but most of all normalise those conversations... so pull up a chair and let's eat cake!

Philip Sheridan - Facilitator | Coach & Mentor | Poet & Writer

Two decades professional background working with children and families around separation and loss.

Lived experience of trauma, death and acquired disability. Proud member of the Patient | Carer Community at the School of Medicine, University of Leeds. Tutor at the School of Medicine.

Feeling very privileged and honoured to co-facilitate our first Death Cafe.