Practical Legal Guidance with Jacqueline Dunne
What do you need to know about making a will, choosing an executor, or documenting your funeral wishes? In this episode, solicitor Jacqueline Dunne shares expert advice on legal planning at end of life—from enduring power of attorney to probate, and how to avoid some of the most common (and costly) mistakes. Packed with real-life stories and practical takeaways, this episode is a must-listen for anyone who wants to plan clearly and kindly for the future.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“She keeps saying, ‘You know what I want to do.’ But it doesn’t matter how many times she says it while she’s alive. Once she dies, if there’s no will, there’s no record… everything gets divided equally. It doesn’t matter legally.”
“It’s peace of mind… the will gives you that. . . Nobody leaves my office after doing a will sad or depressed. They’re always smiling. Their shoulders have dropped down… there’s just that peace of mind.”
Guest: Jacqueline Dunne
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: Neptune Financial
This podcast is produced by Verver
Breda Roche on Hospice Care and Family Experience
What does it mean to truly support someone through the end of life?
In this heartfelt conversation, Breda Roche shares her experiences of caring for her mother, husband, sister, and aunt—all of whom received hospice support. From fears around pain medication to choosing to die at home, Breda offers honest, practical insights that will resonate with anyone walking a similar path.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“It wasn’t just for my mother. It was for me—the confidence that I could go and ask any questions: ‘What do I do? What do I say?’…”
“I’ve no fear of dying… it’s just part of life. We’re all going to face it. . . But I’ve seen what it looks like—to do it well. To have people around you… who care, who know what they’re doing, who listen to what you want.
You’re allowed to live life to the fullest… and you’re allowed to die.”
“Choice is really the best word, I would say… the choice to do what you want to do.”
Guest: Breda Roche
*Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach*
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: Sligo Cancer Support Centre
This podcast is produced by Verver
Finding Hope and Strength Through Life’s Challenges
What does it really mean to be resilient — and how do we find hope in the face of grief, loss, or serious illness? We welcome Dr. Brian Pennie—a neuroscientist, resilience specialist, and author of Bonus Time. He **joins us to explore emotional awareness, personal transformation, and the power of radical acceptance. Drawing from his own lived experience and academic research, Brian offers insights and encouragement for anyone navigating difficult life transitions.
We talk about how grief affects the body and mind, what real emotional awareness looks like in crisis, how caregivers can protect their own wellbeing, and why acceptance—not resistance—is the foundation of peace.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“ Imagine that you have a beautiful garden. You love your garden… but then a weed grows. A loved one gets sick, passes away. You try to fight that weed, pull it up—but it just keeps growing.
The more you resist it, the stronger it gets. So what do you do? You accept the weed is there… and still enjoy the rest of your garden.
That’s resilience. Being there for your life. Watering your other flowers.
It’s not about fixing the loss—it’s about living with it.”
Guest: Dr. Brian Pennie
*Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach*
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: Verver Visual Ltd
This podcast is produced by Verver
Inclusive Support Through Life’s Final Journey
Host Tara Rafter speaks with two spiritual care chaplains at North West Hospice Charity — Father John Carroll and Colette Furlong— about the deeply human role of spiritual support in palliative care. Through stories of presence, ritual, and connection, they explore how chaplaincy offers comfort and meaning to patients and families, regardless of faith. It’s a moving conversation about listening, compassion, and being alongside others in life’s most vulnerable moments.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“Spiritual care isn’t always religious. It’s about meaning, connection, being heard.”
“I never assume I know what someone needs. I just show up. I say, ‘I’m here with you… wherever you are today."
“That’s the difference. Not to guide. Just to walk beside.”
“It’s not for me to have the answers. It’s to journey with them… just to be there while they find their own.”
Guests: Father John Carroll and Colette Furlong
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach*
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: McGowans Crematorium and FUneral Home
This podcast is produced by Verver
Tara Rafter’s Tools and Insights for the Palliative Journey
In this special episode, our usual host Tara Rafter becomes the guest, joined by North West Hospice Charity Manager Olive McTague. Tara, an award-winning life coach and master NLP practitioner, shares practical tools, personal experiences, and emotional insights for navigating uncertainty, grief, and the palliative care journey.
With gentle humour and grounded wisdom, Tara speaks about coping with difficult diagnoses, the role of presence, the power of micro-moments, and how small rituals can help us stay connected — to ourselves and those we love. Whether you’re supporting someone, grieving, or preparing for difficult conversations, this episode offers meaningful support and compassionate guidance.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“Your legacy doesn’t have to be huge. It can be in the tiniest little things. Sometimes the legacy is the sound of somebody’s laughter… the smell of someone’s aftershave. There are things that linger with us from the humans we were lucky enough to meet—that we’ll never forget.”
“People often said, ‘You’re so strong’—but I didn’t feel strong. I felt like a big helpless mess. And what I’ve learned is that strength isn’t holding it all together—it’s actually allowing yourself to fall apart… and still show up.”
Guest: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Host: Olive McTague
Episode Sponsor: Brian Pennie
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
This podcast is produced by Verver
Navigating Life’s Hardest Journey as a Family
When her husband Owen was diagnosed with cancer, Susan Atkinson found herself navigating one of life’s hardest journeys with strength and heart. In this episode, Susan shares how palliative care — and the support of North West Hospice Charity — helped her family through love, loss, and everything in between.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“I was terrified. I didn’t want to talk to anyone from the hospice because I thought that was it—that it was the end… But I wish I’d let them in sooner.
…When they came, it wasn’t scary. It wasn’t dramatic. It was calm. And helpful. And kind. They made things easier—not harder.
…If I was talking to anyone now, I’d say: talk to the hospice.
Don’t be afraid. Just reach out.
It’s not about giving up. It’s about getting help to do it well.”
“That weekend was the same, even though you knew it was really coming to the end… it was a great weekend. It was like a live wake… he was there with the lads, having the craic… and not everyone gets that opportunity.”
Guest: Susan Atkinson
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: The Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care
This podcast is produced by Verver
Practical Guidance on Support and Planning
Planning for illness or death is never easy—but financial stress doesn’t have to make it harder. In this episode, Tara speaks with a seasoned financial advisor Colm O’Flaherty of Neptune Financial about the supports, grants and practical steps that can help families navigate costs around serious illness, lost income, and bereavement. Whether for you, caring for someone, or just want to be prepared, this conversation is packed with accessible, helpful advice.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“Money is safety. It helps us to feel safe—consciously and unconsciously”
“I’ve sat in both chairs—the one where there was life insurance, and the one where there wasn’t. It doesn’t bring the person back… but it helps.
“Those pillars that we talk about — physical well-being, psychological and emotional — the backbone of all of this is your financial well-being. If that’s not there, the pillars fall.”
Planning ahead isn’t about money—it’s about kindness.”
Referenced Links
Guest: Colm O’Flaherty, Neptune Financial
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: North West Hospice Charity Shop
This podcast is produced by Verver
Guiding Families Through Illness, Grief, and Care
In this episode of The Journey Together, we’re joined by hospice social workers Kate and Aoife to explore their vital role in supporting patients and families—from first referral through bereavement. With warmth and honesty, they share how they help navigate tough conversations, emotional overwhelm, and what it means to be truly seen in palliative care.
From the first referral to final goodbyes, Kate and Aoife explain how they support patients and families emotionally & practically. Topics include myth-busting around palliative care, supporting carers, working with children, navigating complex grief, and finding peace even in the hardest moments. This episode honours the invisible threads that bind us in illness and in love.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear expert advice, personal stories, and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“A referral to social work doesn’t mean there’s something wrong. It means you don’t have to go through this alone.”
“There is no right way. Just your way—and we’re here to walk with you.”
“Sometimes, it’s about making a will. Sometimes, it’s about their dog. Either way—it matters.”
Guests: Kate Hawney & Aoife Molloy
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: Stephen Mullen and Sons Haulage and Distribution
This podcast is produced by Verver
Caring for Patients and Supporting Families
What does palliative nursing really look like? In this moving episode, three experienced nurses share the heart of hospice care—across home, hospital, and inpatient settings.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear expert advice, personal stories, and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.
“People think palliative care means there's no hope. But over time, they realise… our role is very much around hope. It’s not about active treatment anymore—it’s about living. And focusing on the things that are most important to people as their illness progresses.”
“Even in end-of-life care… to be there, to provide that… it's an absolute privilege to look after people. Whether it's sorting the pain relief… or just being with them in their final days… it's such an honour.”
Guests: Rosaleen Hughes, Katy Tysalls & Sharon Brennan
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: The Journey Folder by Jacquelyn Dunne
This podcast is produced by Verver
Understanding How Hospice Helps Patients and Families
In this episode of The Journey Together, we explore palliative care with North West Hospice Charity leaders Nuala Ginnelly and Jacinta Kelly. From common myths to compassionate care practices across hospital, hospice, and home, this conversation offers warmth, clarity, and insight into what truly matters at every stage of life.
Nuala & Jacinta highlight the vital role of palliative care in the Northwest through their professional experiences and touching personal stories, they showcase how Northwest Hospice continues to lead the way in patient-centered, community-integrated care—with strong support from staff, volunteers, and donors alike.
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear expert advice, personal stories, and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care
"I asked a patient if he was worried about the future. He only had a couple of weeks left. He looked at me and said, ‘No. Why would I be worried about the future? I’ll miss the present. And today—I’m alive." . . "That floored me. That’s what this job teaches you: don’t put things off. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Appreciate today.”
“Palliative care is about living well—right now—not just dying.”
Guests: Nuala Ginnelly & Jacinta Kelly
Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach
Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis
Episode Sponsor: The Sligo Park Hotel
This podcast is produced by Verver
Navigating Palliative Care
A podcast from North West Hospice Charity
Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care
Launching September 2025
