Our Mission.
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A Dose of Grief seeks to transform the culture of medicine around death and dying through advocacy, education, and compassionate support for the next generation of healthcare professionals.
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We implement this mission across three main aims:
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Advocate for the harmonious integration of deathcare and healthcare systems
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​Educate students and clinicians with the knowledge and skills to effectively deliver deathcare
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Support students and clinicians to care for themselves and others in the face of death
Our Values.
Honesty
Breaking down taboos and openly discussing death​
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Evidence
Utilising evidence-based deathcare and healthcare​
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Compassion
Treating patients, families, and ourselves with kindness and understanding
Our Founders.
A Dose of Grief was founded by two first generation medical students, Paris Matthews and Isabelle Ewert, at the University of Melbourne in 2024. ​
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We want present and future healthcare workers to feel as confident delivering deathcare as they are healthcare. With a blend of personal and academic experiences, we feel passionately about cultivating and supporting ‘death literacy’. ​
Paris began her journey of medicine with an aspiration to become a surgeon who serves beyond the operating room by providing compassionate and comprehensive care through all stages of life and death. Paris is committed to serving underprivileged communities through medical practice in the public healthcare system. When she is not behind the computer, Paris enjoys watching women's football, going for runs, and baking sweet treats.
Isabelle came into medicine with some fears around death. What does death look like? How will I care for the dying as a doctor? What is compassionate care? Having completed the elective Death and Dying subjects in her medical course, some of these fears abated. With this newfound knowledge she was inspired to educate and support other medical professionals. Isabelle’s passion for travel and adventuring outdoors has motivated her to pursue her medical career in the area of critical care, with a particular interest in global health inequity. When she is not studying or working, Isabelle enjoys playing with her dog (get it, ADOG?!) and vintage shopping.
Our Ambassadors.
Our ambassadors graciously volunteer their time to provide guidance and expertise. If you are interested in contributing to our blog, resources, or would like to get involved - please contact us via email.

Dr Hannah Gould
Cultural Anthropologist
Media Appearances
Ray Martin: The Last Goodbye, SBS/BBC, On screen talent, August 2024
The University of Melbourne Newsroom, 'Death education prepares students for tough realities of working in the medical sector', August 2024
ABC, The Conversation Hour, When Doctors Have to Talk About Death, Guests, March 2025

