St Vincent’s clinicians feature in new film aiming to change how people think about palliative care

Clinicians from St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne (SVHM) have participated in a new film, Live the life you please, which hopes to change how people think about palliative care.

The film premiered on 22 May, as part of National Palliative Care Week, and is now screening nationally.

Life the life you please is an intimate portrait of the end-of-life experience told by medical professionals, patients and their families. It makes profound observations about life, death and what happens in between.

The film explores the stories of real people from across the country, experiencing their last chapter and sharing their personal experiences of palliative care. 

Their powerful stories show how palliative care is more than medicine – it’s about quality of life and providing physical, social, emotional and spiritual support to patients and their loved ones.

You can watch a short trailer for the film here.

St Vincent’s Director of Palliative Care and Deputy Director of the Centre for Palliative Care, Associate Professor Mark Boughey, was an Executive Producer for the film.

Associate Professor Boughey has more than 30 years’ experience in the palliative care sector and strives for palliative care excellence where people feel valued, their needs are recognised and they are appropriately responded to.

As part of the film, Associate Professor Mark Boughey also shares his experience as a primary carer for his partner, Lenny, before losing her to cancer.

“The film addresses many of the common misconceptions about palliative care and reinforces the role of palliative care in helping people with a life-limiting illness, and their loved ones, to live as fully and as comfortable as possible,” said Associate Professor Boughey.

“Palliative care can improve their quality of life. It provides support, freedom, dignity, respect and joy, and ultimately it is about enabling people to have the sort of end-of-life experience that is right for them.”

As a proud sponsor of the film, we encourage our community to take the opportunity to watch Live the life your please at your local cinema - information about locations and session times can be found at https://livethelifeyouplease.com/see-the-film/

St Vincent’s has a proud history of delivering palliative care services to our community. Caritas Christi Hospice at Kew was the first inpatient palliative care facility in Victoria, founded in 1938 by the Sisters of Charity.

Today, we deliver inpatient palliative care services at our Fitzroy hospital and at Caritas Christi Hospice, along with a variety of other services and programs.

St Vincent’s Palliative Care Services continue to foster and enhance expertise and developments in the provision of palliative care, including through research and clinical trials.

National Palliative Care Week runs from 21 – 27 May 2023, and aims to put ‘Matters of Life and Death’ front and centre in Australia’s consciousness.