Webinar | Palliative care and bereavement experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic

Guest Speaker: Prof Liz Lobb

The COVID-19 pandemic changed not only how we live, but also how we die. With public health measures, the delivery of palliative care was impacted by reduced opportunities for people to communicate with health professionals, as well as to say goodbye and be present at the death of loved ones and friends. In Australia, little is known about the long-term impact of different restrictions across different palliative care settings, either in hospital or in the community, depending on the location of the death.

This presentation will focus on the effect of public health restrictions on palliative care deaths across settings and the subsequent mental health and bereavement outcomes of family and friends during the pandemic. It will report on data from 2,700 surveys completed by bereaved people as part of a MRFF Grant that investigated the mental health outcomes and support needs of people bereaved during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2021-2022.