You’re Teaching Me Something About Living: Australian Palliative Care Volunteers’ Evolving Experiences of Grief and Loss

Abstract

Palliative care volunteers play a crucial role in supporting people who are terminally ill. Previous studies have indicated that a personal experience of grief and bereavement is a motivating factor for wanting to be a palliative care volunteer. Using reflexive thematic analysis as a methodological approach, the aim of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experience of grief and bereavement in a group of 11 Australian volunteers in adult palliative care settings. Three themes were identified from the dataset: witnessing and finding community; approaching death and dying with curiosity and openness; living well through death awareness. Importantly, death awareness was felt by volunteers to be an essential part of sense making around their past grief and a source of guidance for appreciating life. The findings of this study contribute to a deeper understanding of volunteering motivations, end-of-life care, and the changing nature of grief as a lived experience.