Dying Well - work and employment

This project aims to identify where research and practice need to go next in supporting the wellbeing of people with a terminal diagnosis.

Supporting people to work while they are able, and to make appropriate decisions at a time of their choosing could be the key to this.

Modern advances in palliative care have made it possible for people who are approaching the end of their life to keep on working, and employers are expanding their thinking about inclusive culture and practice to support this group of people.

What did we do?

In this project we worked with Marie Curie to learn more about what works in this area.

Through a mixed methods research project, we have carried out out:

• A rapid scoping review of research (journals and grey literature) on the experience of terminal illness in working age people.
• An employer survey to identify policies and practices currently in place designed to support employees working with a terminal illness diagnosis.
• A call for case studies, practice examples and policies to help build a picture of ‘what works’ in three areas:

1. Employers’ experiences of supporting employees with a terminal illness to continue in work or as they move out of employment.
2. Reports that capture the experiences of employees who have received support to continue working with a terminal illness.
3. Communities of care that are offering support to people to help them keep working.

Who is this for?

The following resources and insights will be of interest to researchers, occupational health and wellbeing professionals, those supporting people of working age living with a terminal diagnosis and those developing work & health policy at a local, regional and national level.