Festival 2022

To Absent Friends

Organised by the Chaplain/Spirituality & Wellbeing Practitioner, NHSGGC Gartnavel General, The Beatson WoSCC & Centre for Integrative Care

Friday Oct 21St 12.00- 15.00 Gartnavel General Hospital (Main Entrance)

From Nov 1-7 The Sanctuary ‘To Absent Friends’ Exhibition (Gartnavel General Hospital)

From Nov 1-7 The Sanctuary ‘To Absent Friends’ Exhibition (The Beatson, WoSCC)

At Gartnavel General Hospital and at The Beatson the ‘Absent Friends’ festival is becoming tradition at both ‘Beild’s’ (This is the Scottish word for Sanctuary). Shared in public or read in private, poetry can put its arms around us all, and this year we host an exhibition with poetry from partners Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care who pioneered the festival reminding us of the power of poetry as both metaphor and instrument for our best selves. There will be a range of ways to record memories of loved ones and friends there too.

In addition, NHS GGC is hosting two special online Death Cafés to get conversations flowing as well as another opportunity for staff to attend our hugely popular "Having Conversations That Matter" session, which helps each of us explore what matters most to us when it comes to end of our lives.

Photo credit: Mackenzie Newnham