Palliative care day in Mirow: Experts united for dignified end-of-life care!

Palliative care day in Mirow: Experts united for dignified end-of-life care!

On June 22, 2025, the third palliative care day in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania took place in the Lower Castle in Mirow. At this important event, experts and interested parties from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the neighboring federal states of Brandenburg and Schleswig-Holstein met to discuss current palliative care in the state. The topic of the day was palliative care, an area that is often neglected in society.

Mirow is a special location because there is an outpatient children's hospice there that also looks after children across national borders. Such facilities are particularly important because many people in the final phase of their lives want to die in the safety of their own four walls. This is where palliative care comes into play, which aims to enable seriously ill people to live a dignified and pain-free life until the end. This task is not only a health challenge, but also a socio-political challenge that needs to be mastered, as MV government emphasizes.

Palliative care in numbers

Throughout Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania there are a variety of offers and specialists who ensure this special care. The people in the country are currently facing:

• 112 Hausärzte
• 14 spezialisierte Teams für Palliativversorgung
• 11 Hospize in Städten wie Neustrelitz, Waren, Schwerin, Rostock, Bergen, Eggesin und Greifswald

The network is supported by numerous initiatives, including Biker Friends MV, which organizes fundraising events for the children's hospice. These activities are crucial to give the hospice movement in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania a further boost and to continuously improve palliative care.

Important topics and challenges

The topic of dying and death is still ignored in many societies. But more and more people want their personal death planning to be in their own hands, such as through living wills or health care powers of attorney. The AWO emphasizes how important it is to promote self-determination and self-responsibility in the context of the last phase of life. The Mike Möwenherz initiative is specifically committed to ensuring that the best possible care is also provided for children with serious, life-shortening illnesses.

In addition, education plays a central role. Many people are unsure about their entitlements to social benefit providers and about the palliative care options available. In order to achieve real improvement here, the Ministry of Labor, Equality and Social Affairs has launched a round table on hospice and palliative care. The aim is to bundle information and make the offers known so that everyone who needs support receives it.

Overall, the palliative care day in Mirow shows that there is a lot of commitment in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to improve the care of seriously ill people. It is important that such topics do not remain hidden and that everyone has the opportunity to inform themselves and clearly communicate their wishes and needs. Because every person should be able to die with dignity and self-determination in familiar surroundings and security.