CHESTER health care professionals are taking part in a ground-breaking project to talk to the public about death and dying.
NHS Western Cheshire has been working in partnership with the Countess of Chester Hospital Foundation Trust and the Hospice of the Good Shepherd to ensure that the local community is informed about the end-of-life services provided and the choices available to them.
Dying Matters awareness week, which will take place from March 15 - 21, will include an exhibition stand at the Forum Shopping Centre in Chester on Monday, March 15, between 10am and 2pm, which will be followed up on Wednesday, March 17, when the Merseyside and Cheshire cancer network health information bus arrives at the Asda car park, Grange Road, Ellesmere Port from 1.30pm to 4pm.
The Hospice of the Good Shepherd will also be holding an open day on Friday, March 19.
Members of the local community will be able to find out more about end-of- life services provided across Western Cheshire.
There will be exhibition stands and guided tours of the hospice and people will have the opportunity to chat to the clinical teams.
A national survey conducted for the first Dying Matters awareness week found that less than a third of people have discussed their wishes around dying and only four per cent have written advance care plans despite the fact that more than two thirds of people questioned say they are comfortable talking about death.