The Forum Report

The Forum on End of Life in Ireland wishes to acknowledge the following participants in the Galway Public meeting which took place on the 30th June 2009:

Padraig O Ceidigh
Dr. Ita Harnett
Robert Conneely
Eadaoin O'Brien
Michael Egan
Raymond Gately
Dr. Helen Greally
             and
Maura Horan, Chairperson in the Western Region of Nursing Homes Ireland and Director of Nursing at Kilcolgan Nursing Home, Kilcolgan, County Galway whose name was inadvertantly omitted from all literature in reference to this meeting.  Ms. Horan's participation was greatly appreciated by the Forum on End of Life in Ireland.

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The Forum was designed to engender greater public discussion on end of life and the care of those at the end of their lives; and there was indeed a most positive response to the endeavor from some in the media.  However, the exercise was also very much a listening one, designed to identify participants' views about end of life issues in Ireland, and their wishes and aspirations for the care and treatment of those at end of life in this country.

This report brings together the views of those who contributed to the Forum by making submissions, by presenting papers to workshops, and by participating in disucssions at workshops and public meetings.  What follows is a comprehensive analysis of the rich and varied material - factual, experiential, theoretical - presented to the Forum.  It is organised thematically into chapters, the themes having emerged organically in the course of the analysis.

The report does not seek to present the latest national or international thinking on any aspect of palliative or end of life care.  Its purpose is, rather, to communicate the main themes, messages and issues raised by contributors to the Forum.  It thus provides a baseline document, which will inform a Forum Action Plan to be developed on  its completion.  This means that those who contributed to the process will have played a key role in shaping the future work of the Forum.

Mr. Bob Carroll, Compiler and Writer of the Forum Report and Draft Action Plan