What is an End-of-Life Doula?
I have been interested in end-of-life care and issues around death for years – at one time I considered becoming a mortician, but I realized it’s the work done before dying that calls to me. Which is why I am so grateful to have my business, Thank Goodness! Senior Concierge, helping older folks stay active, independent, and engaged. My clients are some of the smartest, coolest, most interesting people I’ve ever met. I build strong connections with my clients and tend to work with them until they no longer need me – either because they move away to live with a son or daughter, or because they pass away. In the times it has been the latter I have found myself wishing I was more prepared and better skilled to help my clients and their families through the end-of-life experience.
A few years ago I heard the term “death doula” (also “end-of-life doula” or “end-of-life care coordinator”) and was inspired to learn more. In May 2022, I completed The University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine’s End-of-Life Doula Professional Certificate Program. This course prepares students to provide non-medical, non-judgmental, emotional and spiritual support and soothing physical comfort measures. It also offers a foundational knowledge of symptoms associated with terminal illnesses, the physiology of death, and techniques for alleviating suffering.
The course offers practical yet compassionate information on how to attend to the needs of the dying—from providing referrals to local professionals to sitting bedside with a dying client to doing a load of laundry for an exhausted caregiver. Cultivating the Doula Heart, Essentials of Compassionate Care by Francesca Lynn Arnoldy, Program Director at UVM, is a lovely compendium that served as our guidebook. But as the author states, “the doula heart can be infused into all work and into any relationship,” as we all will experience loss and we all will witness others grieving.
I am glad to be able to expand my services to include End-of-Life care coordination. Much of what I already do leads naturally to this path but the End-of-Life Doula course affirmed my passion for caregiving and companioning while giving me more resources to offer my clients on the last leg of our journey together.
Here are some helpful links:
https://www.webmd.com/palliative-care/features/end-of-life-death-doulas
