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Nurses get their big-screen due in must-see Late Shift

Nurses get their big-screen due in must-see Late Shift

RTÉ News​5 days ago
As our health service lurches through the seasons, the compare-and-despair temptation is ever present. Surely, everything has to be brilliant in, say, Switzerland?
Well, as Late Shift shows, the Swiss have their own share of troubles. By the year 2030, they will be short of 30,000 nursing professionals - and 36% of trained nurses quit within just four years.
Those shocking statistics are hammered home in this night-in-the-life portrait of one nurse, Floria (Leonie Benesch), as she, a disaffected colleague, and a first-year student deal with close to 30 patients on their ward.
If you enjoyed the Stephen Graham-starring restaurant drama Boiling Point, then this is one to see for all the same reasons - fast-moving, filled with tension, superb characterisation - albeit with much higher stakes.
Floria's eight hours start manageably, but director Petra Volpe starts to ramp things up as darkness falls, and the calls, requests, and plates in the air increase by the half-hour. It's shocking how few people say thank you as Floria goes above and beyond.
This is one of the performances of the year from Benesch, who was so good in another must-see, September 5, a few months back. Come to think of it, you won't get a classier double bill.
A small film with big things to say, Late Shift closes with a chilling postscript from the World Health Organisation. It estimates a shortage of 13 million nurses by the year 2030.
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Family horror as suicide clinic ‘sends them WhatsApp saying their mum, 58, is dead and her ashes are in the post'
Family horror as suicide clinic ‘sends them WhatsApp saying their mum, 58, is dead and her ashes are in the post'

The Irish Sun

time5 hours ago

  • The Irish Sun

Family horror as suicide clinic ‘sends them WhatsApp saying their mum, 58, is dead and her ashes are in the post'

Maureen Slough's family say their beloved mum had been battling mental illness for a long time TRAGIC MUM Family horror as suicide clinic 'sends them WhatsApp saying their mum, 58, is dead and her ashes are in the post' AN IRISH family was left devastated after allegedly receiving a text from a Swiss assisted dying clinic that their mum was dead and her ashes would be sent by post. Maureen Slough, a 58-year-old from Cavan, travelled to the Pegasos clinic on July 8 to seek an assisted death - without her family's knowledge - according to the Irish Independent. 2 Maureen Slough, a 58-year-old from Cavan, travelled to the Pegasos clinic on July 8 to seek assisted dying Credit: Facebook 2 Her heartbroken daughter Megan Royal says the family were not aware of their mum's plan to end her life Credit: Facebook Maureen reportedly told her family that she and a friend were going to Lithuania. "I was actually talking to her that morning and she was full of life," Maureen's partner Mick Lynch told the newspaper, speaking about the morning of her death. "She said after having her breakfast... she was going out to sit in the sun. Maybe she was heading off to that place. I still thought she was coming home." Her daughter, Megan Royal, then received a heartbreaking WhatsApp message, which allegedly said her mum had died listening to gospel music sung by Elvis Presley. The family is shocked that the clinic would accept an application for assisted dying from Maureen, who they say had long struggled with mental illness. She had also attempted suicide a year prior, after the deaths of her two sisters. Adding to their dismay, the family claims the clinic never informed them of her plans. Friends are reportedly horrified by the clinic's method of returning the ashes via parcel post. Her friend, Stephanie Daly, told the newspaper: "You get letters in the post, not people." Desperate for answers, the family found out Maureen had paid a reported £13,000 to the Pegasos Swiss Association to assist her death. Car bursts into flames in busy Glasgow street sparking rush hour chaos The Pegasos group is a non-profit voluntary assisted dying organisation. According to its website, the clinic believes it's "the human right of every rational adult of sound mind, regardless of state of health, to choose the manner and timing of their death". The group allegedly said it received a letter from Megan, stating she was aware of and accepted her mum's decision to die. The clinic also claims it verified the letter's authenticity through an email response from Megan, using an email address her mum provided. But Megan insists she never wrote the letter or verified any contact from the clinic, the report said. The family claims Maureen may have forged the letter and created a fake email address to verify it. Her brother Philip, a UK solicitor, claims Maureen provided the clinic with "letters of complaint to medical authorities in Éire in respect of bogus medical conditions" - which Pegasos then used as supporting documents for her application. Megan reportedly argues her mum's decision to go to the clinic was made in a state of grief, as a result of her sisters' deaths. She also cites her mum's difficult upbringing as a child. It is understood that in the past few weeks, the family has received handwritten goodbye letters from Maureen. The Pegasos group maintains that it carried out an extensive assessment of Maureen's mental health - including an independent psychiatric evaluation. They added that Maureen told the clinic she was in unbearable and unrelievable chronic pain and that they received supporting medical documentation from her pain-management consultant. Regarding the letter, the clinic claims Megan confirmed its authenticity via email and apologised for not being able to accompany her mum to Switzerland. The clinic claims the letter expressed that while Megan was unhappy with her mum's decision, she accepted it. Maureen's brother wants the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, along with Swiss authorities, to conduct an investigation. "I am working on the assumption that my sister created this email and the clinic's procedures were woefully inadequate in verification," he wrote. "The Pegasos clinic has faced numerous criticisms in the UK for their practices with British nationals, and the circumstances in which my sister took her life are highly questionable." When approached for comment by the Daily Mail, The Pegasos Swiss Association said it could not "share, confirm, nor deny the identities of our patients in public". It added: "When talking about voluntary assisted death in Switzerland, it is important to understand that all organisations are legally bound to do careful prior assessment. "Pegasos has always respected the applicable Swiss law without exception and continues to do so." Maureen's family's story is not unique. Other families have also slammed Pegasos, claiming they had no knowledge that their loved ones would undergo assisted deaths. In 2023, Pegasos reportedly vowed to contact a person's relatives beforehand after 47-year-old teacher Alistair Hamilton - who had no diagnosed illness - died, leaving his family shocked. However, in 2025, the organisation appeared to break this promise. Anne Canning, a 51-year-old British mum, who was battling depression after the sudden death of her son 19 months prior, ended her life at the clinic, ITV first reported. Her family were allegedly not informed of her decision - only finding out after they received goodbye letters she had written shortly before her death.

‘We found out from a WhatsApp that my mother had died by assisted suicide' – family of Cavan woman tell of shock
‘We found out from a WhatsApp that my mother had died by assisted suicide' – family of Cavan woman tell of shock

Irish Independent

time18 hours ago

  • Irish Independent

‘We found out from a WhatsApp that my mother had died by assisted suicide' – family of Cavan woman tell of shock

Swiss clinic criticised by family of Cavan woman (58) with history of mental illness after they were left in dark over her death planDaughter of Maureen Slough was told her mother's ashes would be posted to herFamily say they were not informed by Pegasos clinic about assisted suicide, but clinic claims it received permission from daughter by email Maureen Slough died listening to gospel music sung by Elvis Presley. Or at least that is what her family have been told. None of them were with the 58-year-old as she slipped away at a clinic in Switzerland.

Nurses get their big-screen due in must-see Late Shift
Nurses get their big-screen due in must-see Late Shift

RTÉ News​

time5 days ago

  • RTÉ News​

Nurses get their big-screen due in must-see Late Shift

As our health service lurches through the seasons, the compare-and-despair temptation is ever present. Surely, everything has to be brilliant in, say, Switzerland? Well, as Late Shift shows, the Swiss have their own share of troubles. By the year 2030, they will be short of 30,000 nursing professionals - and 36% of trained nurses quit within just four years. Those shocking statistics are hammered home in this night-in-the-life portrait of one nurse, Floria (Leonie Benesch), as she, a disaffected colleague, and a first-year student deal with close to 30 patients on their ward. If you enjoyed the Stephen Graham-starring restaurant drama Boiling Point, then this is one to see for all the same reasons - fast-moving, filled with tension, superb characterisation - albeit with much higher stakes. Floria's eight hours start manageably, but director Petra Volpe starts to ramp things up as darkness falls, and the calls, requests, and plates in the air increase by the half-hour. It's shocking how few people say thank you as Floria goes above and beyond. This is one of the performances of the year from Benesch, who was so good in another must-see, September 5, a few months back. Come to think of it, you won't get a classier double bill. A small film with big things to say, Late Shift closes with a chilling postscript from the World Health Organisation. It estimates a shortage of 13 million nurses by the year 2030.

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