Philosophical practice in palliative care and hospice work

The aim of hospice work and palliative care is to improve the life quality of dying people and those who care for and about them. From the very beginning of the hospice movement it was clear that "hospice" is more than a building - it stands for an attitude. Hospice culture becomes concrete in a culture of care in all places where people grow old, die, mourn, and care for each other. It is therefore not only, perhaps not even mainly, constituted in specialised services. The taboo about Death should be broken down so that Death has a place in everyday life. This also means to confront questions of an existential kind, the deepest, so to say the "last questions" of life. The confrontation with death bears out a becoming aware of borderline situations, which according to a famous definition by Karl Jaspers, is the deepest origin of doing philosophy. Hence, philosophy is not necessarily an elitist affair. On the contrary, for the movement of "philosophical practice", the essence of philosophy is rooted in the middle of everyday life and can be practised by anyone and everyone. So, "philosophical" questions arise in hospice and palliative care work and often with great existential urgency and clarity. However, it shows that these questions are not dealt with by reference to philosophical traditions and methods. In the practical contexts of palliative care, philosophical practice is largely unknown and far from being structurally anchored (with isolated exceptions). In our research we therefore pursue the following questions: What does philosophical practice contribute (already and potentially) to the development of hospice care culture in our society? What is the significance of philosophical practice for end-of-life care? First, we explore the activities and experiences of philosophical practitioners in relation to the topics of dying, death, and mourning (literature study, individual and group interviews). In addition, we will develop experimental models of philosophical practice by a participatory approach. People and organisations involved in end-of-life and bereavement care will participate in this phase. Furthermore, we will test and explore philosophical practice in public contexts, in caring communities, to raise awareness about dying, death, and bereavement. Through this approach of "participatory action research" (researching with and not just about other people) we want to understand chances and limitations of a practice-oriented way of doing philosophy. The project will allow us to draw conclusions which are practicable and prepared for realization in the practice of palliative care and caring society.