‘I had the last hug’: palliative care workers lament the good deaths Covid took away

Last wishes have gone unfulfilled, families been kept distant - the pandemic has made death a lonely experience. For carers, it's underlined the value of a good death

Rachel Coghlan first witnessed death as a four-year-old when she watched her grandfather collapse and die in front of her. Later, as a physiotherapy student working as a carer in a nursing home, she found a woman dead in her bed. A nurse taught her not to recoil and instead showed her how to bathe and dress the body.

Later again, working as a physiotherapist in London, she watched as a man from Sudan struggled to weigh up a diabolical choice between staying in the UK to access treatment, or returning home to his family but with no prospect of healthcare. He chose his family.