Sharing Stories from End-of-Life Doulas

Angela Shook considers herself a natural nurturer. She has always been drawn to non-profit work and especially to hospice, or end of life care. She experienced first-hand the quality of care that hospice provided to her grandfather at his end of life. The impact that hospice care and support had on her entire family inspired her to do more and learn more about end of life care. In this episode of End of Life Care from a Distance, Angela explains how she found her calling as an End-of-Life Doula and why she choose the University of Vermont's End-of-Life Doula program [https://learn.uvm.edu/program/end-of-life-doula-at-uvm/end-of-life-doula-certificate/]. She also shares how her experience as a Doula and a Hospice volunteer has changed during the pandemic. Angela, who is also the President of the Board of Directors of the National End-of-Life Doula Alliance, works as a volunteer program manager at Hospice Care of Southwest Michigan. End-of-Life Doulas complement the care provided by family members and friends, as well as medical, palliative, and hospice professionals, within the settings of hospitals, senior care facilities, and homes.

For over 20 years Nancy Weber was an Occupational Therapist in New York City and later worked as an advocate for children with developmental disabilities. She says through her experience working with individuals and families with chronic illnesses and her own personal challenges with chronic depression, she developed an interest in end of life care. After completing UVM's End of Life Doula Professional Certificate program [https://learn.uvm.edu/program/end-of-life-doula-at-uvm/] this past spring, she had planned to return to hospice volunteering when the Coronavirus Pandemic hit. In this episode of End of Life Care from a Distance, Nancy shares how she is drawing on the learning from the course to maintain a calm presence and focus on listening right now amongst so much uncertainty. End-of-Life Doulas complement the care provided by family members and friends, as well as medical, palliative, and hospice professionals, within the settings of hospitals, senior care facilities, and homes.

Diane Button started the End of Life Doula Alliance of Marin County in Northern California to combine areas of expertise in end of life care with regional doulas. Button completed UVM's End-of-Life Doula Professional Certificate [https://learn.uvm.edu/program/end-of-life-doula-at-uvm/end-of-life-doula-certificate/] program in March of 2019. She feels as though we all have been given a diagnosis to pause and reflect during the Coronavirus quarantine. In this episode of End of Life Care from a Distance, Button talks about the changes she has made to continue to support clients and families at end of life from a distance. End-of-Life Doulas complement the care provided by family members and friends, as well as medical, palliative, and hospice professionals, within the settings of hospitals, senior care facilities, and homes.

Alana Osher is an end-of-life doula and a hospice volunteer. UVM End-of-Life Doula Professional Certificate [https://learn.uvm.edu/program/end-of-life-doula-at-uvm/end-of-life-doula-certificate/] program taught Osher the power of holding space and being present for whatever unfolds. That learning has proven to be incredibly helpful amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode of End of Life Care from a Distance, Osher and other end-of-life doulas are finding creative ways to support the dying and their families. End-of-Life Doulas complement the care provided by family members and friends, as well as medical, palliative, and hospice professionals, within the settings of hospitals, senior care facilities, and homes.

To not feel overwhelmed by the COVID-19 crisis, caregiver and recent graduate of UVM's End-of-Life Doulas Professional Certificate [https://learn.uvm.edu/program/end-of-life-doula-at-uvm/end-of-life-doula-certificate/], Mary Holmes is trying to stay balanced. That means gardening and listening to music. Holmes is a supervisor for the supportive day program at the Martha’s Vineyard Center for Living. She works with clients who live with disabilities and varying levels of memory impairment. As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread, Holmes has reached out to her local hospice organization to let them know that she recently completed the UVM End-of-Life Doula program and to see how she could help. In this episode of End of Life Care from a Distance, Mary shares her thoughts on how to connect with loved ones during the mandated social distancing. End-of-Life Doulas complement the care provided by family members and friends, as well as medical, palliative, and hospice professionals, within the settings of hospitals, senior care facilities, and homes.