Bereavement

A range of online, phone and in-person services are available in the NHSGGC area and nationally. 

Visit linked webpages to confirm if services are for staff, patients and families. Please note, not all organisations provide support for both adults and children.

NHSGGC

• Macmillan Information & NHS Bereavement Centre based at Glasgow Royal Infirmary (open + section below)
  
  
• NHSGGC Staff Counselling Service
  Counselling services are available to all NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde employees within the Occupational Health Department at the West Glasgow ACH. Please note, this is a service for NHSGGC employees only.
  
  
• NHSGGC Bereavement Support for Parents, Siblings and Staff
  See contact details for the service provided by Child Bereavement UK at the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow.
  
  
• Beatson Cancer Charity Bereavement Support
  Available to "any adult who has been bereaved through cancer and your loved one received care from the West of Scotland Beatson Cancer Centre or other west of Scotland hospitals."

Hospices

Hospices may provide bereavement support if you have had a connection with their services. Visit their websites to find the latest information.

• Accord Hospice
• Ardgowan Hospice
• Marie Curie Hospice Glasgow
• The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice
• St. Margaret of Scotland Hospice
• St. Vincent’s Hospice

Local Authority - Information & support available to residents

• Renfrewshire Bereavement Network
• Compassionate Inverclyde
• Your Support Your Way Glasgow

National 

• Marie Curie's Bereavement Support Service
• Cruse Scotland Bereavement Support

Bereavement involving children

• Children's Hospices Across Scotland
• Child Bereavement UK

The Macmillan Information and NHS Bereavement Centre is based at Glasgow Royal Infirmary.

The Centre is located on ground floor of the centre block of Glasgow Royal Infirmary.
You can drop in between 9.30am and 4.30pm Monday to Friday.
For more information call 0141 451 5373 or email macinfoandnhsbereavement@ggc.scot.nhs.uk

The service provides patients, families, carers and staff access to information materials on various types of cancer, long term conditions and their treatment. The team can provide a listening ear and signpost you onto other support services such as benefits advice, a dedicated one-to-one support worker through Macmillan’s Improving the Cancer Journey, or help to get active. Please visit us and see if we can offer you any assistance. We can also visit you on the ward.

We can provide:

• time to listen and talk in a comfortable, friendly environment
• leaflets and booklets on all aspects of living with and beyond cancer
• access to additional cancer support
• leaflets and booklets about living with long term conditions

We also offer:

• help to arrange counselling and free complimentary therapy appointments if you are affected by cancer
  support to access practical help, such as help at home and travel insurance
• referral to other available support services.
• We will be working in partnership with Palliative and Spiritual Care to offer people the right support at the right time.

The team can also provide emotional and practical advice around end of life care, including information about power of attorney, wills and funeral planning. We also offer support with complex bereavement issues, bereavement counselling and benefits advice to help cover the cost of the funeral.

We can offer information and signposting including:

• what you need to do when someone dies
• information about carers support for people looking after someone for example a partner, a patient, a relative with cancer or another long term condition
• access to other organisations that can help, including local support groups
• assisting with repatriation
• discussing organ and tissue donation
• face to face training for staff
• end of life care

Information about this service on Macmillan website

NHSGGC Resources

Bereavement bags

Bereavement bags are no longer available to order through Pecos but are available for collection/delivery on all sites. The bags have to be used to return belongings to relatives/carers/friends after a death in NHSGGC Hospitals.

Family Memento/Keepsakes & Bereavement Resources
When someone is dying, the use of mementos may provide comfort and a physical connection between
the patient, their families and carers. Memory making to support bereavement is not new with its roots
predominately in neonatal and paediatric care. Where appropriate the use of mementos in adult care
should be promoted. List of mementos with a brief explanation on how to use

What Can Happen When Someone is Dying: Information for Friends or Relatives
Download or order booklet from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Public Health Resources Directory

When someone has died – information for you
Download or order booklet from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Public Health Resources Directory

National Resources

Support Around Death

This NHS Education for Scotland website aims to support health and social care staff who are working with patients, carers and families before, at, and after death. It provides key information on the clinical, legislative, and practical issues involved.

What to do after a death in Scotland – practical advice for times of bereavement: revised 11th edition 2016 
The guide provides the reader with a list of useful contact details. Only available as a download from Scottish Government website

Bereavement Charter for Children & Adults in Scotland
Scotland's first Bereavement Charter for Children and Adults was launched in April 2020.

Child Poverty Action Group - Funeral support payment
Help with funeral expenses in Scotland.

Digital Legacy

Organisations advising on / providing resources supporting management of your digital data at end of life / after death:

The Digital Legacy Association

Marie Curie: How to sort out online accounts

Registering a Death and related Local Authority services

National Records of Scotland – Registering a Death

Local Authorities provide information about burial services, registering a death and other related advice.

Glasgow City Council 
Renfrewshire Council 
East Renfrewshire Council 
Inverclyde Council 
West Dunbartonshire Council 
East Dunbartonshire Council 
North Lanarkshire Council 
South Lanarkshire Council 

During the Out of Hours period Police Scotland may be contacted for advice on finding a registrar.
Telephone: 101

Tell Us Once

Tell Us Once is a service that lets you report a death to most government organisations in one go.

MCCDCertification of Death (Scotland) (NHSGGC network connected devices only)

Death Certification - Support Around Death Website

Includes Completing an MCCDand Death Certification Education and Learning Resources