Globally, interest is growing in defining a ‘good death’ and providing culturally relevant end-of-life care, but no clear consensus exists. While notions of a good death differ between the Global North and South, Global North frameworks often dominate. For instance, The Economist’s Quality of Death Index ranks countries on ‘good death’ provision, with Western nations leading. It promotes medicalised, institutionalised palliative care as the ideal, urging lower-ranked Global South countries to follow suit. Using a decolonial lens, this lecture critiques the universalisation of such models and advocates for diverse, culturally grounded approaches to dying and end-of-life care.
Professor Shahaduz Zaman, a physician turned medical anthropologist, will reflect on his journey from working as a doctor in rural Bangladesh to addressing global health issues across South Asia, Africa, and the Mediterranean. His experiences led him to adopt a decolonial perspective, focusing on end-of-life care as a key area for pursuing decolonisation.
Free event. All are welcome. If you would like to attend, please register online no later than 48 hours prior to the event.