Resource Center

Canadian Virtual Hospice provides over 28 modules paired with videos on palliative and end-of-life care topics. The topics are designed to be facillitated for patients and their family members from the comfort of their home. The website also provides support groups, testimonials, and learning tools for professionals. 

What Is Palliative Care?

• 10 Myths about Palliative Care
• What Is Palliative Care?

Emotional Health

• Understanding death and dying: Ages and stages
• Caring for grieving children and youth
• Not feeling yourself during COVID-19? It could be grief
• Physical distancing and dying: When you can’t be at the bedside
• Grieving during COVID-19
• How educators can support students coping with COVID-19-related grief
• Supporting Children through serious illness and grieving during COVID-19
• All In This Together: Coping With Advanced Illness and Dying as a Family
• Mindfulness: Making Moments Matter
• Guilt, Regret, Forgiveness, Reconciliation
• Stress and Distress
• Anxiety
• Hope and Denial
• Don't Use the 'D' Word: Exploring Myths about Children and Death
• Sexuality – Breaking the Silence
• Living with Limited Time: Exploring Feelings
• Grief in Times of Celebration: The Empty Spot
• Moving through Grief

Spiritual Health

• Spirituality and Life-Limiting Illness
• Finding a Spiritual Companion
• Finding Meaning and Purpose during a Health Crisis
• Rituals for Patients and Families
• Rituals to Comfort Families
• Sharing Your Story

Symptoms & Health Concerns

• Swelling of the Belly
• Common concerns about opioids in palliative care
• Safe use of medicines
• Sorting out health concerns
• How Long Have I Got?
• Confusion
• Constipation
• Dehydration
• Depression
• Fatigue
• Lack of Appetite and Loss of Weight
• Malignant Wounds
• Nausea and Vomiting
• Pain
• Shortness of Breath
• Sleep Disturbance
• Swallowing problems in degenerative brain diseases

Providing Care

• Sleep and Caregivers
• Caring for Yourself
• Help with Medications
• Help with Eating
• Care of the Mouth
• Caring for Hair and Face
• Help with Bathing
• Help with Toileting
• Skin Care

Communication

• Talking with children and youth about death
• Tips for Talking with Your Health Care Providers
• Tips for Visiting
• Talking with Children and Youth about Serious Illness
• When to Tell the Children: Preparing Children for the Death of Someone Close to Them
• What Do I Say?
• Tips for Talking with Someone Who is Dying
• Sending Condolences

Decisions

• Health Care Decisions: An Approach to Decision Making and Advance Care Planning
• Health Care Directives
• Advance Care Planning Across Canada
• Did I do the right thing?: Reflections after a death
• Remaining at home: Things to consider
• Explaining Withholding Treatment, Withdrawing Treatment, and Palliative Sedation
• Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)
• Planning a Funeral
• Wills
• Planning a home funeral

Financial Assistance

• Patient Benefits
• Caregiver and Survivor Benefits

Final Days

• Final weeks and days: What to expect
• Children at the Bedside of a Dying Family Member or Friend
• The Moments After a Death
• Care of the Body After Death

About the organization: Canadian Virtual Hospice Resources is an online resource to help people move through their grief from the comfort of their own home, at their own pace. It can help you understand your grief and approach some of the most difficult questions that may arise. It was developed by people who have experienced the death of someone important to them and grief specialists. It complements existing community resources and helps address barriers to grief services. Many people working in healthcare use it as an education tool. It is also used by grief support groups and educators. The Canadian Partnership Against Cancer funded the vision and the original nine modules. Health Canada has funded the latest series of modules.