10/12/2026
For many people their understanding of palliative care is that it means end of life. The evidence, and the national standards that guide care in Canada and abroad, point to something quite different. Palliative care works best when it starts early, alongside other treatment, and stays in place as a serious or life-limiting illness changes.
Read More09/14/2026
Ask most people when palliative care should start for someone living with dementia, and you’ll often hear “near the end.” That answer is understandable — and it’s also the myth this month’s theme is built to challenge. Dementia is a life-limiting, terminal condition, and the evidence is clear that a palliative approach belongs in the
Read More09/10/2026
By: Dr Daphna Grossman When we talk about dementia, there is so much to talk about. We talk about safety. We talk about the enormous burden on care-partners—the countless hours of caregiving, the physical and emotional exhaustion, and often the financial strain. We talk about how difficult it can be to keep someone at home
Read More08/07/2026
Maria Panzera Rugg’s Women’s Equality Day reflection on Personal Support Workers/Care Aides named something that shouldn’t need naming, but it does, that the women sustaining Canada’s home care and long-term care system, disproportionately immigrant and racialized women, are serving the most vulnerable people in the country while being profoundly vulnerable themselves. Her reflection is clear
Read More07/31/2026
Women’s Equality Day is a powerful reminder that gender equity is not theoretical, but it is lived, daily, in the bodies, homes, and workplaces of women whose labour sustains our communities. At Life and Death Matters, we honour this day by centring the women whose contributions are too often invisible: immigrant and racialized Personal Support
Read More07/20/2026
Across Canada, more people are receiving palliative care than ever before. The Canadian Institute for Health Information reports that 58% of Canadians who died in 2021 to 2022 had some access to palliative care. This is up from 52% five years earlier, showing real, measurable progress1. And yet an estimated 2.8 million Canadians living with
Read More07/10/2026
By: Maria Panzera Rugg After decades in palliative care, I’ve learned that the deepest truths of this work live not in policies or protocols, but in the quiet, human moments: a PSW sitting at the bedside long after tasks are done, a nurse pausing in the hallway to breathe before entering another room, a team
Read More06/18/2026
National Indigenous History Month invites us to pause, reflect, and deepen our understanding of the Indigenous Peoples whose lands, languages, and teachings are the foundation of the places where we live and work. It is a time to consciously name truths, honour resilience, and recommit ourselves to culturally safer care, especially for those of us
Read More06/03/2026
By: Dr. Holly Prince Boozhoo. Wiiji’iwe nindizhinikaaz, Opwaagaanisiniing niindoonjibaa, Thunder Bay nindaa. Makwa dodem. My English name is Holly Prince. I am an Anishinaabekwe and a member of Opwaagaanisiniing, located in Northwestern Ontario. I am an Indigenous scholar and social worker, and have been working in the space of caregiving, dying and death for over
Read More05/14/2026
Life and Death Matters President Tiara Sisson recently joined the EdUp Canada podcast for a thoughtful and timely conversation about the future of palliative care education in Canada. The episode shines a light on the urgent need to prepare PSWs, HCAs, and continuing care professionals with the skills, confidence, and emotional readiness required for real‑world palliative care.
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