The Chief Executive of the Irish Hospice Foundation has said today is a day to pause and reflect on the 35,000 people who died in Ireland in the last year and to reach out to those bereaved in these pandemic times.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Sharon Foley said that "one year on, we pause and reflect and think of them and extend our sympathies to their families".
There is concern about the longer psychological impacts of deaths during this time for many, she said, especially for those not able to visit family and loved ones in nursing homes.
She said 30,000 people had died from causes other than Covid-19 in the last year, while there were 4,500 deaths linked to Covid-19.