Supporting and caring for those who are dying is the focus of events to mark World Day of the Sick in Dublin this weekend. (Feb 10^th/11^th)

Those who are to the forefront of providing hospice and palliative care in the city will take part in two events on Saturday and Sunday.

‘Finding Life in the Face of Death’ is the theme for a conference in St. Francis Hospice, Raheny on Saturday from 9am to 1pm. Taking part will be healthcare professionals who provide this vitally important and often difficult service for families in Dublin including Ethel Mc Kenna CEO at St. Francis Hospice.

On Sunday Archbishop Diarmuid Martin will be the main celebrant at a Mass of healing and Anointing of the Sick at 3pm at Our Lady, Mother of Divine Grace Church in Raheny.

Last year on the north side of Dublin alone there were over 7,500 visits to patients in their homes from the Hospice Home Care Team. Attendances at Hospice Home Care exceeded 2,100. 299 people died in the Hospice in Patient Unit last year. Currently over 95% of patients receiving palliative care suffer from cancer. With an ageing population, demand for Hospice services is set to increase dramatically over the next few years.

The Dublin events are part of a series worldwide. In his message for World Day of the Sick, Pope Benedict XVI said the Church wishes to support the incurably and terminally ill by calling for just social policies which can help eliminate the causes of many diseases and by urging improved care for the dying and those for whom no medical remedy is available.