Created: 2026-06-01
Grief Walker
Griefwalker (2008) – Documentary Overview
This documentary introduces us to Stephen Jenkinson, once the leader of a palliative care counselling team at Toronto’s Mount Sinai Hospital.
Through his work in hospital wards, Jenkinson has been present at the deathbeds of well over 1,000 people. What he repeatedly observes, as he describes it, is “a wretched anxiety and an existential terror” — even in cases where physical pain is not present.
Rather than accepting this as an unavoidable side effect of modern end-of-life care, Jenkinson offers a stark critique of how palliative care is commonly practiced. He challenges the cultural and medical systems surrounding death, arguing that they often reinforce denial and resistance rather than presence and meaning.
In response, he has dedicated his life to reshaping how we understand dying — not as something to be managed or avoided, but as a deeply essential part of living itself.
Directed by: Tim Wilson
Year: 2008
Runtime: 61 minutes