A new initiative is aiming to get communities talking about death, and support others with grief
A new project which aims to help communities unleash their compassion has been unveiled.
The Truacanta Project aims to help people find ways to help each other with death, dying, loss and care.
The initiative is part of the Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care (SPPC), and funded by Macmillan Cancer Support. The project is part of the SPPC's ongoing Good Life, Good Death, Good Grief initiative, which promotes more open and supportive attitudes and behaviours relating to death, dying and bereavement in Scotland.
Traditionally, communities played an important role supporting those at the end of life in lots of small but important ways - taking care of the garden, bringing round a meal, popping by for a chat. As people live longer, families move away and death becomes more medicalised, many traditional community links and support networks have been lost. Yet the support of friends, family, neighbours and colleagues is essential in providing much-needed comfort and practical help when someone is very ill, dying or bereaved. No-one should have to deal with these difficult experiences alone.
The Truacanta Project will support local communities across Scotland who are interested in taking community action to improve people’s experiences of death, dying, loss and care. It will take a community development approach, supporting communities to make the most of their existing enthusiasm, strengths, skills and resources and take practical actions that improve experiences for local people.
For example, a community might want to set up a network of volunteers to sit with people who are very ill, work with local employers to try to make workplaces more bereavement-friendly, or run courses to educate people about the support that can be provided around dying and bereavement. Whatever the activity, the Truacanta Project will help communities to become more connected, and better equipped to help each other with death, dying, loss and care.
Project manager, Caroline Gibb, said: “I’m delighted to be managing The Truacanta Project, and am really looking forward to working with communities and finding out what matters to them. There is a lot of positive work already happening in this area and I’m sure there will be many creative ideas for how local projects can help improve people’s experiences of death, dying, loss and care.”
