Heather Richardson is Joint Chief Executive of St Christopher's Hospice, London, and Honorary Professor in Palliative Care at Lancaster University, UK. She is a nurse, and has held clinical, managerial and leadership roles in hospice/palliative care over the last thirty years. Her PhD focused on people's experience of day hospice.

Gillian Chowns is a social worker by profession, and has practised, lectured and researched in palliative care. Her PhD examined the experience of children living with the life-threatening illness of a parent. She is Chair of the Board of Trustees of Palliative Care Works, a charity offering education, training and mentoring in resource-poor settings.