South Staffordshire Action Alliance - How I Want To Go
We are delighted to announce that we will be supporting the 'How I Want To Go' campaign across South Staffordshire. The campaign is being ran by The Staffordshire Action Alliance and MyWishes will be providing the online platform for those wanting to document their wishes online.
The Staffordshire Action Alliance are a group of voluntary organisations who have come together based on a shared interest in End of Life issues. The Alliance prioritised care plans as an area of work to focus on. It is recognised that having a care plan in place can improve dialogue around issues relating to end of life care, reduce crises admissions and increase the likelihood of peoples wishes being adhered to.
“The My Wishes care plan includes information about you as a person, from favourite foods and movies to the important people who should be involved in decisions about your health if you cannot speak for yourself. Anyone can log onto the site and complete the form and even print off a copy to file with their will, Lasting Power of Attorney or other important documents for the future.” - Ian Leech (Alliance spokesman and lead coach).
As part of the project, which is funded by NHS England, if participants agree, the care plans will be shared with a senior nurse at St Giles Hospice, an alliance member. Further details can be found here
'How I Want To Go' was created to make areas around end of life planning more accessible. A number of workshops, training seminars and public engagement activities will take place across Staffordshire in the coming months.
If you live in South Staffordshire register by visiting www.mywishes.co.uk/southstaffs
New CNN documentary on digital death and digital legacy
We were recently visited by a camera crew from CNN in the USA for a documentary. It explores different options and approaches to death in today's digital world. Some of these are more based on fantasy whilst others are more based in reality. We were filmed by Laurie and the crew in the beautiful and historic Highgate Cemetery in London.
To register for a free MyWishes account click here
DeadSocial's digital legacy tool and resource hub is evolving
DeadSocial is evolving
DeadSocial will soon be rebranded and relaunched as 'MyWishes'. We are busy working on the next version of DeadSocial. We have been working very, very hard and think that you are going to love it. Once it is live we will allow another 10,000 users to use the service for free. Until the next version is ready in June feel free to view learn more about our free service and our story...
How DeadSocial works
Visit our resources
Please feel free to read thought our visit our resources. Here you will find information on how the internet is changing death and bereavement. Our free to access tutorials range from how to prepare for death in today's digital world to how to use the internet to arrange a funeral..
What kind of messages will Queen Latifa leave to the world?...
New BBC Documentary 'Rest in Pixels' - Watch it here
“There are now over 30 million dead people on Facebook, so what happens when we leave that digital representation of ourselves behind? This film delves into the explosion of ways in which to store, advance, digitise and personalise our very own digital legacies. From avatars and holograms, to androids and algorithms that can tweet on our behalf from beyond the grave. We are now no longer resting in peace, we are resting in pixels”.
The BBC recently filmed the documentary ‘Rest in Pixels’ across a range of locations. It includes footage of DeadSocial’s website and our pop-up digital legacy booth (in a VW van in East London). The documentary also includes insights from our friend, Lucy Watts MBE
New Book Contribution: A matter of life and death
Overview
‘I rejoice that death has become less of a taboo subject in our conversations. In this timely book you will discover precious wisdom and heartfelt insights from people of all walks of life…As I have listened to these voices, I have found reassurance and enlightenment. I know this book will offer the same gifts to you whether you believe in a transition to a new life or contemplate the beyond with some uncertainty. I commend it highly.’
– from the foreword by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu
Contributors from all walks of life share their thoughts on carefully selected writings, images and artwork that most accurately express death to them. Describing their unique experiences, they reveal that, beyond the heartache and the mystery, death teaches us all invaluable lessons about how we live our lives. Offering comfort, reassurance and varied insights into death, loss and its impact on life, this collection is for anyone who might be coming to terms with this inevitable destination. Royalty proceeds from the book will be donated to Ashgate Hospicecare, North Derbyshire, UK.
About the contribution
Last year James Norris (MyWishes’s founder) was asked by the author to contribute some of his experiences on death. James decided to speak about his good friend and former university housemate Ben Birch who died of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (S.A.D.S) in 2013.
The league is a way for Ben’s friends to stay connected to Ben in a non-morbid, contextually relevant way to the person Ben was and those in Ben’s wider friendship group today. It is an active group that merges discussions about Ben with informal banter about what is going on in the world of football and how people’s teams are performing within Ben’s memorial, Fantasy football league. This league has value for for Ben’s friendship group and has helped raise a significant amount of donations for the ‘Cardiac Risk in the Young’ charity since its formation.
James’ contribution revolves around the personal value he places on this league. A matter of life and death will go on sale on the 18th August 2016. You can preorder you copy on Amazon here.
Ben (above – being carried, thumb placed in mouth) was an avid football fan. He also played Fantasy Football (a online football game) each week during the football season. After Ben’s death a mutual friend from University called Andrew Hadley (above holding Ben) created a memorial league in Ben’s honour.
Recent news...
Self-empowerment
The best way to ensure that your unique, end of life wishes are adhered to, is to document and discuss them. You are welcome to use MyWishes to assist.
We are a ‘tech for good’ service and everything is free to use. To learn how it works click here.
Michael Sobell Hospice Palliative Care Department Mount Vernon Hospital, Gate 3 Northwood HA6 2RN United Kingdom (Map)
- Register and document your wishes for free here
- For all enquires click here
- To learn how MyWishes works click here
MyWishes free to use software was developed under the guidance of healthcare, hospice, legal and funeral professionals. Our platform empowers society to make plans for both themselves and those they care about.
DeadSocial featured in Buzzfeed
Buzzfeed's recent lighthearted video approaches death and being able to say goodbye to loved ones online.
"Use an account like DeadSocial where you store messages and photos that will be posted after death in intervals... - Buzzfeed.
MyWishes (formally DeadSocial) empowers our users to leave goodbye message for publication after their death
Streaming Pantomime to Hospices at Christmas
Overview
DeadSocial (now called MyWishes) devised and supported an initiative to video stream the pantomime ‘Cinderella’ from the Broadway Barking theatre to a range of hospices across the UK at Christmas.
An access code for the live video stream was generated and provided to 12 hospices across the UK. As well as being aired on TVs and large screens in hospices it was also provided to patients and their families to enable viewing on laptops, tablets, mobile phones etc. It was supported by Together for Short Lives and promoted by Help the Hospices. The initial announcement about our initiative can be found on the Together for Short Lives website.
The purpose of this project was to bring the joy and tradition associated with ‘the Christmas pantomime’ to all not matter what their circumstances. It was carried out for free with the kind support of volunteers and hospice staff across the UK. The stream was made available for free to as many hospices, patients and their families as possible.
The LivInfographic
Overview
Over the last few years Infographics have become an extremely effective way to tell stories using data. Infographics are (in short) graphical representations of datasets. They are often focused around one or more pieces of data and provide insights into a specific subject matter.
The concept
Build an Infographic installation that lives in a physical space that uses real-time data to populate it over the course of one week. By visualising realtime data about death and dying the subject matter might become more accessible and approachable for members of general public.
The outcome
We launched and built an art installation called the #LivINFOGRAPHIC (the living-Infographic) at the start of Dying Matters Awareness Week. The LivINFOGRAPHIC lived within a physical space and used data collected from our digital death survey.
The LivINFOGRAPHIC was visited by many members of the public during it’s lifespan. It was installed on Camden High Street as part of our ‘You Only Die Once’ Popup Shop’ (69 Camden High Street, London). The installation was sat on 3 metres x 2 metres of real turf (grass) and lived and breathed over this period.
Although the installation has now been dismantled the ‘Digital Death Survey’ was live for four weeks. The results from the data provided can be found here.
This survey asks questions about end of life matters in relation to our online accounts and in today’s digitally connected society. The installation’s concept was devised by James Norris (founder of MyWishes). The set was built with the assistance of installation and performance artist, Natalie Jackson.
The LivInfographic was just one of many initiatives and events hosted in the ‘You Only Die Once’ Pop-Up shop’ for Dying Matters Awareness Week. These included workshops, a Death Cafe, live music, poetry, photography and art. Organisations involved ranged from NHS Camden and Islington to The Good Funeral Guide and CALM.
You Only Die Once, Pop-Up Shop
We would like to thank all of the charities and organisations who helped support the You Only Die Once Popup Shop
Recent News
Hospices receive a live video stream from a London pantomime this Christmas
The Broadway Barking will be streaming performances of their successful Christmas pantomime ‘Cinderella’ to hospices live across the UK this Christmas for free.
This initiative was devised and is supported by MyWishes. It is hoped that this project will roll out across the national network of hospices and hospice patient families via the umbrella organisations Together for Short Lives and the UK-wide charity, Help the Hospices.
So far the hospices who have been granted access to the stream from the fairy Godmother (as shown in the photo above) are:
- Richard House
- St Josephs
- Northern Ireland Children Hospice
- Helen and Douglas House
- Children’s Hospice South West
- Claire House
- Children’s Charity Scotland
The Broadway has teamed up this year with Arc Theatre marrying all the traditional fun of pantomime, with the theatrical ingenuity and contemporary comment that has set Arc apart for 30 years. To stream the pantomime live and for free to your hospice or nursing home contact Barry Burke via barry.burke@thebroadwaybarking.com
Michael Sobell Hospice Palliative Care Department Mount Vernon Hospital, Gate 3 Northwood HA6 2RN United Kingdom (Map)
- Register and document your wishes for free here
- For all enquires click here
- To learn how MyWishes works click here
MyWishes free to use software was developed under the guidance of healthcare, hospice, legal and funeral professionals. Our platform empowers society to make plans for both themselves and those they care about.
