What is an End of Life Doula? A “Doula” is a trained professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to their clients. An end of life doula, or death doula, provides non-medical support by educating the patient at their end of life and their family members so they know what to expect during the final phases of life. A doula stands in the gap between Hospice visits to answer questions and advocate for the patient. In a hospital setting, a doula can be at the bedside to advocate a patient’s wishes to hospital staff and support the family as well.
Why do I need an End of Life Doula? Talking about dying and death can be uncomfortable and downright scary. Our society has medicalized dying to the point that many people have not experienced the death of another person let alone how to care for a dying person. A trained doula can give insight into having conversations about what to expect as the body dies, seeking forgiveness, expressing regrets, planning legacy projects or life review, stating final wishes, and making funeral arrangements.
There are so many tasks needed to care for my loved one, will a doula help me with that? Yes. A doula, while not a medical professional, is trained in comfort care, the phases of the top 10 life-limiting diseases, sitting vigil in the final phase of life, making arrangements for the funeral. Some end of life doulas act as celebrants and can conduct funerals. Even if you have a large family or support network, things happen, people get ill. A doula can stand in so folks can get a shower, run an errand, or simply have a moment of solitude to collect their thoughts.
So, what is an Elder Care Doula? This is a companion to an elderly client, going on outings, running errands, reducing their possessions or creating a legacy for loved ones, and building a trusting relationship so that when a life-limiting diagnosis is made, the elder care doula can attend doctor visits. The doula can ask the important questions and take notes for the family. This trusting relationship can go through the end of a client’s life provide to support the family.
You are a Doula Care Consultant? How is that different than an End of Life Doula? I took advanced training to learn all aspects of advanced care planning. I became certified as a Doula Care Consultant, which means I have walked someone through making their own advance directive, choosing their health care agent, and describing for their loved ones what their wishes are for their end of life. This typically is referred to as planning for The Good Death. The Doula Care Specialist wraps up all aspects of end of life care into one broad scope of practice. Each doula has their own areas of expertise within that scope of practice, which is why many doulas belong to a collective, or have connections with other doulas in their community, so that clients can be referred to a doula with the expertise they desire.