Jewish groups to host loneliness webinar

Jewish Care Victoria and C Care will host a free community webinar on loneliness as part of Loneliness Awareness Week 2026, held under the theme “Make Room for Connection”.

The webinar, to be held on Thursday, August 20 from 7pm to 8pm, will feature pharmacist Jenny Kirschner, founder of Pharmacy Addressing Loneliness and Social Isolation (PALS) and creator of what is described as the world’s first pharmacist training program on loneliness. Kirschner will present evidence-based approaches to strengthening social connection.

The webinar follows the release of the World Health Organization Commission on Social Connection report, which estimates about 870,000 people die each year from loneliness-related impacts, or more than 100 lives every hour. The report found loneliness and social isolation are widespread and carry serious, often overlooked, consequences for health, wellbeing and society.

Professor John Cacioppo of the University of Chicago, who researched loneliness for more than two decades, described it as a biological warning system, comparable to hunger signalling a need for food or thirst signalling a need for water. Loneliness is not classified as a mental health condition, but as a distressing feeling that one’s social relationships are not as meaningful or satisfying as desired.

Research has linked chronic loneliness to increased risks of cardiovascular disease, depression, anxiety, cognitive decline and premature death.