Palliative care social work: ‘this is proper social work, this is what I trained to do’

To some, at first glance, working in a hospice might seem a gloomy place to practise social work.
However, Wendy Ashton, joint education lead at the Association of Palliative Care Social Workers (APCSW), believes social work in palliative care is about celebrating life rather than focusing on death.
“This is proper social work, this is what I trained to do. I don’t mean that to be demeaning of any other social work but it is totally different,” she says.
Palliative care, usuall