Death, love, and taxes: tales of resilience and humanity
BMJ 2024; 387 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.q2846 (Published 23 December 2024) Cite this as: BMJ 2024;387:q2846
- Tasnime Osama, clinical editor,
- Richard Hurley, collections editor
- tosama{at}bmj.com
- rhurley{at}bmj.com
Credit: Rowena Sheehan
Far too many people dying and grieving remain undersupported and feared. Dying is “as natural and inevitable a transition as birth,” says Lucy Selman, an expert in dying and grief (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2815).1 Selman calls for a revolution in end-of-life care: a comprehensive public health approach, supported by palliative care that is fit for purpose.
Reclaiming dying and grieving as social processes requires demedicalisation to counter the pursuit of futile interventions at the end of life (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2703)2 and to normalise conversations about dying. Death cafes have a role here (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2392),3 as do death doulas (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2853)4 and a decolonial lens to promote inclusive and culturally appropriate care (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2810).5 Our consideration of death continues with research on the relationship between death and Alzheimer’s disease in taxi and ambulance drivers (doi:10.1136/bmj-2024-082194)6 and a new journal policy on posthumous authorship (doi:10.1136/bmj-2024-080830 doi:10.1136/bmj.q2568).78
We also celebrate the enduring power of love and caring, from heated mittens for patients with hand osteoarthritis (doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-078222)9 to fairy tales as opportunities to engage with children about healthy and disordered sleep (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2548).10 We learn how emergency medical services in the Arctic rescue polar bears and safely transport them back to the wild (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2417).11 We examine the health risks to which Disney’s princesses are exposed (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2497).12 And Hank Wangford, doctor and country music singer, tells us about his love song to the NHS (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2625).13
In a world shattered by conflict and injustice (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2739),14 the director general of the World Health Organization makes the case for peace (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2629).15 This year’s BMJ Appeal is for the International Rescue Committee, which provides emergency and long term aid to people displaced by war, persecution, or natural disaster in about 40 countries. Please make a donation (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2580).16
Finally, taxes: the often resented but essential glue of civilisation. Scandinavia’s taxes drive equity, improving population health and outcomes. Could this work elsewhere (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2700)?17 Might degrowth (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2781)18 or conviviality be the answer (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2719)19 to healthier societies?
In the face of adversity, even small acts of kindness can build solidarity and health; take, for example, Brazil’s grassroots food assistance movement (doi:10.1136/bmj.q2462).20 What if love was as certain an aspect of the human condition as death and taxes? These three forces, as universally recognised as they are personal, shape our health, lives, and world.