Episode 5: Compassion in Practice - End of Life Care Education at SFT

Welcome to the fifth episode of the NHS Somerset Knowledge & Library Service podcast! In this episode, we're joined by Laura James, Lead for the End of Life Care Education team at Somerset FT, to explore how her small multidisciplinary team works to support staff in delivering confident, compassionate care during one of the most challenging areas of clinical practice. We discuss the newly launched End of Life Care CPD page on LEAP, the development of the Somerset End of Life Care website, and why strengthening knowledge and skills in this space is so vital when a third of the Trust's patients are in their last year of life. Laura also shares what's ahead for 2026, including the Dying Matters campaign, and collaborations with partners such as St Margaret's Hospice and district nursing teams. We talk about the cultural barriers around discussing death and dying, the value of planning ahead, and the growing role of Death Cafés in Somerset as welcoming spaces for open conversation and reflection. 🔗Useful Links- Palliative Care CPD Dashboard: https://leap.somersetft.nhs.uk/course... Somerset EOLC Website: https://somerset.eolcare.uk/ Lucy Pollock's Talk: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/an-aud... Death Café Taunton:   / deathcafetaunton   📧 End of Life Care Education Email Address: [email protected]   📣 Library Feedback – Help Us Improve We're always looking for ways to make our Knowledge & Library Service even better, and your feedback really helps us shape what we do and how we contact you. Whether you've used our spaces, requested an evidence search, attended training, or received articles through document supply, we'd love to hear about your experience. It only takes a couple of minutes to complete our Library Feedback Form, and your comments directly influence how we develop our services for colleagues across SFT. 👉https://forms.office.com/e/pTbAR3L9jk   📖 Join the Bookends Book Club Love reading and sharing ideas?   The Bookends Book Club, run by Veronica Price, is a welcoming space for staff & students to come together and explore a wide range of books. Whether you're a regular reader or just curious, everyone is welcome!   📬 Want to join? Simply email the library team at: [email protected]     📬 Stay Connected & Get Involved   We'd love to hear your thoughts on the podcast — whether it's feedback on an episode, ideas for future topics, or someone you think we should feature. Your input will help us shape the podcast to better serve staff & students across Somerset Foundation Trust.   🔗 Explore more episodes and learn about the podcast: https://somersetft-nhs.libguides.com/...   📝 Share your feedback or suggestions: https://forms.office.com/e/XUSrHmkZ4D   📧 Contact Megane Quelvennec – Knowledge & Evidence Librarian: [email protected]     📞 Reach Out to Us   Have a question, suggestion, or just want to say hello? We'd love to hear from you! You can contact the NHS Somerset Knowledge & Library Service team directly at:   📧 Email: [email protected]   🌐 Website: https://somersetft-nhs.libguides.com/...