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This essay offers a critical assessment and reflection on the field of public health based on policy directions and themes gleaned from the historical story of John Snow and the Broad Street pump in 19th century London and recent international responses to Covid‐19. Dominant public health strategies, especially for infectious disease emergencies, demonstrate a persistent tendency towards authoritarian claims about science that marginalise concerns about human rights, showing disregard for interprofessional and partnership working, antipathy toward critical voices and a retreat into old ideas about death and dying as medical failure. There is also neglect of the fundamental importance of social relationships as a primary source of health and well‐being. Recommendations for a more positive approach for the future of public health are made. These include restoration of, and recommitment to, partnership working with communities, experiential literacy, the prioritising of social support and incentives over negative sanctions, and the acknowledgement and support of end‐of‐life experiences as a focus for special and overdue public health attention. These suggestions advocate for the application of ‘new’ public health priorities to address and rebalance the limitations of the old, usual approach.

\"What is it really like to die? Though our understanding about the biology of dying is complex and incomplete, greater complexity and diversity can be found in the study of what human beings encounter socially, psychologically and spiritually during the experience. Contributors from disciplines as diverse as social and behavioural studies, medicine, demography, history, philosophy, art, literature, popular culture and religion examine the process of dying through the lens of both animal and human studies. Despite common fears to the contrary, dying is not simply an awful journey of illness and decline; cultural influences, social circumstances, personal choice and the search for meaning are all crucial in shaping personal experiences. This intriguing volume will be of interest to clinicians, professionals, academics and students of death, dying and end-of-life care, and anyone curious about the human confrontation with mortality\"--p. [4] of cover.

Background Compassionate communities are rooted in a health promotion approach to palliative care, aiming to support solidarity among community members at the end of life. Hundreds of compassionate communities have been developed internationally in recent years. However, it remains unknown how their implementation on the ground aligns with core strategies of health promotion. The aim of this review is to describe the practical implementation and evaluation of compassionate communities. Methods We undertook a scoping review of the empirical peer-reviewed literature on compassionate communities. Bibliographic searches in five databases were developed with information specialists. We included studies in English describing health promotion activities applied to end-of-life and palliative care. Qualitative analysis used inductive and deductive strategies based on existing frameworks for categorization of health promotion activities, barriers and facilitators for implementation and evaluation measures. A participatory research approach with community partners was used to design the review and interpret its findings. Results Sixty-three articles were included for analysis. 74.6% were published after 2011. Health services organizations and providers are most often engaged as compassionate community leaders, with community members mainly engaged as target users. Adaptation to local culture and social context is the most frequently reported barrier for implementation, with support and external factors mostly reported as facilitators. Early stages of compassionate community development are rarely reported in the literature (stakeholder mobilization, needs assessment, priority-setting). Health promotion strategies tend to focus on the development of personal skills, mainly through the use of education and awareness programs. Few activities focused on strengthening community action and building healthy public policies. Evaluation was reported in 30% of articles, 88% of evaluation being analyzed at the individual level, as opposed to community processes and outcomes. Conclusions The empirical literature on compassionate communities demonstrates a wide variety of health promotion practices. Much international experience has been developed in education and awareness programs on death and dying. Health promotion strategies based on community strengthening and policies need to be consolidated. Future research should pay attention to community-led initiatives and evaluations that may not be currently reported in the peer-review literature.

This article presents an interview with lead authors Dr Libby Sallnow and Dr Richard Smith of the ‘Report of the Lancet Commission on the Value of death: bring death back to life’ published in January 2022. The authors are interviewed by Julian Abel, Director of ‘Compassionate Communities UK’, and Allan Kellehear the Co-Editor-in-Chief of ‘Palliative Care & Social Practice’. The interview covers the reasons why the authors believe it is now time to review our major ways of providing care at the end of life including the current efforts in palliative care. The interview also underlines the important points made in the Report, provides reflections on some of its limitations, and suggests the role readers may play in contributing to the Report’s recommendations and challenges.

Background: Compassionate communities are part of an international public health movement aiming to address social determinants of death by fostering supportive environments. Yet, empirical research on community engagement in this field is still limited, particularly the influence of local contexts on engagement patterns. Objectives: This study aimed to identify effective engagement practices and contextual factors influencing the development and sustainability of compassionate communities. Research design and method: A comparative ethnographic method was used to examine community engagement processes in two culturally distinct compassionate communities in Montréal (Canada): Centre-Sud and West Island. Data collection included participant observation, semistructured interviews, and logbooks. Informed by developmental evaluation, the analysis was guided by a thematic lens approach and the Ecology of Engagement framework. Results: Two distinct, context-sensitive paths to community engagement emerged, shaped by the sociocultural realities of each setting. In Centre-Sud, a grassroots, community-led approach focused on shared leadership and building trust fostered a resilient network that achieved sustainability through the creation of an independent nonprofit organization. In contrast, West Island’s institutionally led strategy was a pragmatic response to navigate contextual barriers like preexisting community distrust, achieving sustainability by embedding the initiative within the lead organization via a permanent staff role. Conclusion: This comparative ethnography demonstrates that success is not defined by a single model but by adapting engagement strategies to local dynamics of trust and power. It highlights that while community-led approaches can foster deep ownership, institutionally led strategies can provide a crucial pathway to sustainability in contexts facing systemic barriers. The study offers a practical framework for practitioners and key lessons for developing evidence-based policy to support compassionate communities in diverse settings. Plain language summary Developing compassionate communities: Lessons from two different Montréal neighborhoods Developing ‘compassionate communities’—local networks that support people through serious illness, grief, and the end of life—is a shared effort. This research explored the most effective ways to engage communities in this work by comparing two distinct Montréal neighborhoods: the downtown Centre-Sud area and the suburban West Island. We found that there’s no single recipe for success. In the downtown Centre-Sud area, community groups took the lead, building a strong, trusted network that eventually became its own non-profit organization to ensure sustainability. In the suburban West Island, a local palliative care residence guided the process, creating a permanent staff role to secure a lasting impact. The key lesson is that the best approach depends on a community’s unique character and history. Success comes from adapting the strategy to fit the local reality.