Workshops for Practitioners

Navigating End-of-Life Conversations with Confidence

Become more skilled at facilitating one of life’s difficult conversations.

Time pressures, uncertainty about how to begin, and the fear of distressing patients or families often make end-of-life discussions feel daunting. These common challenges contribute to a worrying gap in care, with only 53% of doctors and 31% of nurses felt at ease discussing death. This arts-based workshop tackles those challenges head-on, building your personal readiness to navigate end-of-life conversations.

Through creative and drama-based exercises, explore the personal side of communication and work through the internal barriers that often make these discussions feel daunting. These reflective activities provide a grounded way to hone your communication skills and examine your own attitudes toward death and dying.

Develop practical strategies for handling these difficult moments within your professional practice. You will gain:

  • A greater readiness to initiate end-of-life conversations
  • An increased sense of comfort in managing your own emotional responses
  • A renewed motivation to engage in end-of-life conversations with individuals and their loved ones

And be able to:

  • Identify personal barriers to initiate end-of-life conversations
  • Increase your confidence in initiating end-of-life conversations

We offer two distinct tracks to ensure the experience fits specific professional contexts:

  • For Care Practitioners: This session focuses on facilitating end-of-life conversations within care settings with patients, clients, and their families. Best suited for trained Advance Care Planning advocates or facilitators.
  • For Arts, Creative & Community Practitioners: This session focuses on handling end-of-life conversations within community settings.

“It helped me see end-of-life from a broader perspective with less rigidity, and pressure on myself to have certain skillsets and experiences.” – Social Worker, 2025 Workshop Participant

This workshop is for
Doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, social workers, community workers, students, as well as arts, creative, and community practitioners

About the Artist Facilitators

Adib Kosnan

Adib Kosnan

Workshop Facilitator

Adib is an actor, writer, director, educator, and NAC scholar with a MA in Arts Pedagogy and Practice (Distinction) from Goldsmiths, University of London. He is currently an Associate Artist with Checkpoint Theatre.

As co-lead artist for Both Sides, Now: Mengukir Harapan (2021–2022), Adib spearheaded engagement around end-of-life conversations within the Malay-Muslim community. He views theatre as a space to shape thought and life through socially engaged work. Recently, he worked on Air (2024), a verbatim theatre project amplifying Orang Seletar voices on displacement and identity. Adib currently teaches forum theatre and facilitation as an adjunct lecturer at Singapore Polytechnic and LASALLE.

Michael Cheng

Michael Cheng

Workshop Facilitator

Michael is an applied drama practitioner and educator with extensive experience facilitating workshops and socially engaged arts projects. He has worked with diverse vulnerable communities, including people with disabilities and seniors, exploring themes such as intergenerational communication, active ageing, and social support. He has taught applied drama to educators, artists, and community practitioners in Singapore and internationally.

Michael has collaborated with organisations like Lions Befrienders and TOUCH Community Services on impactful arts-based initiatives. He holds a MA in Arts Pedagogy and Practice (Distinction) from Goldsmiths, University of London, supported by National Arts Council Arts Scholarship.

Frequently Asked Questions

This workshop is designed for two distinct groups:

  • Care Practitioners: Healthcare professionals, social workers, and allied health staff across care settings. Ideally, you are already trained as an Advance Care Planning (ACP) advocate or facilitator, as this workshop expands on those skills.
  • Arts, Creative & Community Practitioners: Artists, creatives, facilitators, and community practitioners who engage with the themes of death and dying or support individuals in community settings.

Yes — you don’t need any arts experience. You’ll take part in creative and drama-based activities and exercises that will help identify personal barriers and challenges to initiating and facilitating end-of-life conversations. You’ll also hone your facilitation skills, as well as share and learn strategies to employ in effective end-of-life communication.

Piloted in 2023 by ArtsWok Collaborative with a healthcare institution, participants shared significant improvements in 3 key areas. You’ll gain greater comfort initiating end-of-life conversations, better management of intense emotional reactions, and stronger motivation to start these important discussions — skills that will enhance your professional practice.

The primary focus of this workshop is on developing your own readiness and “internal toolkit” as a practitioner. While you will experience various creative and drama-based approaches, the goal is to help you process your own discomfort and sharpen your communication skills. You will leave with a more intuitive approach to facilitation rather than a manual of arts-based activities to lead with others.

The workshop is designed with a mix of activities — some stimulating, others more reflective. Most activities will require interacting with others. To get the most out of your experience, come prepared to participate, share your thoughts and learn from others.

Gallery

Mapping various highs and lows in their lives, participants identify individual milestones that have shaped who they are as part of the “Life Journey” activity

In the “Blind Walk” activity, participants move through the space with their eyes closed and reflect on what it means to navigate unfamiliar situations

Participants form ‘still images’ to express unforgettable end-of-life encounters, moments shaped by the environments they were in

Community Voices

“It provided practical language, structure, and strategies that make [end-of-life conversations] feel more grounded and compassionate.”
Senior Staff Nurse, 2025 Workshop Participant