WINTER 2024

Home > Newsletters > WINTER 2024

WINTER 2024

[VIEW ARCHIVE] *Using a mobile phone or tablet? Turn your device sideways to view

Doula’s Guide to Catholic Rituals at End of Life

by Cheryl Tyiska

This is part 2 of a series INELDA is sharing on end-of-life rituals of different religions to help inform and educate doulas on the many practices of different faiths.

Who is a Catholic?

All people who have ever received the sacrament of baptism in the Catholic Church are Catholic, even if they no longer practice the faith. A person can be baptized at any time during their lifetime. Those who receive the additional sacraments of the Holy Eucharist and confirmation are “fully initiated” into the Catholic Church. Those baptized in another Christian faith tradition may become Catholic by receiving faith formation education and making a profession of faith. Those never baptized can become Catholic after attending a faith formation program known as RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) and receiving the sacraments of baptism, Holy Communion, and confirmation.

doula Profile
Alison Butler
Alison has completed the doula programs at INELDA and the International Doula Life Movement, as well as the advanced planning program at IDLM. She is a faculty member at IDLM, facilitates the mentors group for IDLM doulas, and created its legacy curriculum. Alison is a member of the Tucson End-of-Life Doulas and the Arizona End-of-Life Care Partnership. She holds a PhD from the University of Oregon and is an amateur photographer and baseball aficionado.
Q&A with Alison
When and why did you decide to become an end-of-life doula?
I grew up in the Castro district in San Francisco in the ’70s and saw the effects of the AIDS epidemic up close. The way the community pulled together to support people dying alone and seeing how hospice could reduce suffering at the end of life had a tremendous impact on me. I was never afraid of being around illness and was very disheartened by the irrational fears people had around those dying of AIDS.

UPCOMING EVENTS

INELDA Discovery Call - Certification - January 17

Discovery Call: End-of-Life Doula Certification

January 17 | WED 7-8:30pm ET

Have you already completed INELDA’s End-of-Life Doula Training or our Refresher Training? Do you have practical experience as an end-of-life doula? If you are seeking more guidance and instruction in your practice, join us for our Q&A night for an overview of INELDA’s certification and process. An INELDA certification allows others to know you have accompanied multiple people at end-of-life and received 1:1 support along the way. | REGISTER

INELDA End-of-Life Doula Training - January 19-21

•INTENSIVE• End-of-Life Doula Training

January 19-21 | FRI 6-10pm, SAT & SUN 10am-7pm ET

This ONLINE doula training is for those who intend to serve the dying independently, as part of a hospice program, in a hospital or care facility, through a community program, or in a doula collective. Topics include models of care, deep active listening, ritual and ceremonies, vigil planning, and more. This class is open to all and will meet for three days on a Friday evening and full days on Saturday and Sunday. Limited to 40 individuals. Click to see the full schedule | REGISTER

Hospice End-of-Life Doula Training

January 27-28 | SAT & SUN 10:30am-7pm ET

Hospice end-of-life doula training is designed for care provider organizations seeking to have current staff or volunteers trained as end-of-life doulas to enhance their care teams and services. Limited to 24 seats. This two-day training taught by educator Claudette Peterson is open to those who are currently affiliated, volunteer with, or employed by a hospice organization. Click to see the full schedule | REGISTER

MEDIA OF THE MONTH

We Who Grieve: Understanding Our Most Painful Emotion

by Richard A. Stack

Richard A. Stack, associate professor emeritus, taught for three decades in the School of Communication at American University. He has published four books and is an award-winning documentary producer. He volunteers at Washington, D.C.’s leading grief counseling center. READ EXCERPT

Launching Community Meetups for MEMBERS IN 2024!

by INELDA

Starting this February, INELDA will be hosting community meetups for all members, including those who have gone through our training program and those who joined INELDA looking to engage with a wider doula community. The meetings will be varied in style and will include connecting with others in breakout groups, partner and member presentations, self-care offerings, and opportunities to practice your doula approach.

These meetups are in addition to the mentoring groups already offered and are designed to allow for a more casual and exploratory environment. Get to know others in the INELDA doula community through small group mingling, introduction to new tools and approaches, and shared stories. Bring your joys, fears, excitement, and curiosity.

INELDA UPDATE
2024 RETREAT DATES ANNOUNCED
For those looking to learn with us in a retreat environment, INELDA is partnering with Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York, for the second year in a row, offering both summer and fall dates. We are also excited to head to Hollyhock on remote Cortes Island in British Columbia for the first time. All retreats include meal and lodging options. VIEW DATES
SEEKING INELDA-CERTIFIED DOULAS FOR SPEAKERS BUREAU
If you are an INELDA-certified doula, we are interested in connecting with you for our speakers bureau and press opportunities. We frequently receive calls and hope to add your voice to the conversation. READ MORE

JOB OPPORTUNITY: INELDA DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
INELDA is hiring a part-time director of development. If you have a passion to change the way end-of-life care is delivered in this country and more than three to five years of experience in development, please consider becoming part of our team. READ MORE	SUBMIT YOUR RESUME

STAFF TRANSITIONS
We would like to thank Yvette Pacheco for the work and energy she has brought to INELDA. We are grateful for the dedication and insights she brought to all of us. We would like to welcome Janine Cuthbertson in her role as the member program coordinator. Janine is an end-of-life doula who trained with INELDA in 2023.

INELDA’S JANUARY WEBINAR
Monthly Webinar

Expansive Endings: Queerness and End-of-Life Care
January 31 \| WED 7-8:30pm ET
End-of-life doulas and writers Tasha Fierce and Zena Sharman, PhD, will kick off INELDA’s 2024 webinar series on the complexities and opportunities afforded by dying queerly. From the AIDS pandemic to the rise of anti-LGBTQIA2S+ fascism today, attendees will be invited to learn from diverse queer community histories and practices around death, dying, and grief as sites of collective care, political resistance, and social transformation. Tasha is the founder of Liberated Transitions and an artist, INELDA-trained doula, facilitator, and educator with over 20 years’ experience. Zena is a writer, speaker, strategist, and LGBTQIA2S+ health advocate committed to collective liberation.
Joining as a special guest is INELDA board member David Copeland. The night will be moderated by Loren Talbot, INELDA Director of Communications and Partnerships.
Cost: Free with INELDA Tier 2 & 3 membership \| Tier 1 and Non-members $15

PRACTICE CORNER

TOOLBOX TIPS

I had a time when a family asked me to speak with them without the dying person being present. Before I even met some members of the family, there were serious issues. In fact, the family was split in various ways. Some were accepting, some weren’t; some had their own ideas of what should happen, some were numbed out; some wanted to talk, and some didn’t. The history and dynamics were complicated. I found that asking questions that led to discussion was invaluable. Answering their questions led to more questions. We spoke about fears, regrets, thoughts about what was happening, and where things were headed. Prior to speaking with the family, I talked to my client and received their permission. It’s all about trust and relationship with the person you are supporting.

—Karen Ostrowski

SHARING SOURCES
Evaheld
Evaheld, a memorialisation app, was created by Australian entrepreneurs Michelle Costas and Michelle Gomes to deliver posthumous content to loved ones. Recognizing that people felt vulnerable and inhibited when creating content to leave after their death, they developed the platform.
The interface allows for video, voice, and written messages to be delivered based on the user’s desired time cycles, so content can be delivered years following one’s death to celebrate birthdays, anniversary, and other important dates. Additionally, a third party can be assigned access to update Evaheld with any information regarding user status or other changes.

ASK INELDA

Is there market saturation for doulas, and is it a concern?

—Q&A participant

Educator Kris Kington-Barker: Right now what I’m hearing from the hospices that I speak with is that they are having so much difficulty getting volunteers. Since COVID they have lost a lot of their volunteers, and many of them ended up shutting down their volunteer programs because they couldn’t let volunteers go in—for two years. So it is a great time for a doula to volunteer, as a lot of hospices have never built back their volunteer programs to required numbers. READ MORE

Please submit questions to [email protected]

SELF-CARE

Turning Down the Sound

It is indeed a radical act of love just to sit down and be quiet for a time by yourself. —Jon Kabat-Zinn

“What’s your resolution?” I asked someone at a loud, laughter-filled New Year’s Eve party. The room was boisterous with multigenerational celebrations which brought everything from shrieks to video games to a live-streamed concert for adults. I hadn’t really considered what mine was when I had asked (I am more of a birthday resolution type). A week later it came to me. Earlier that morning while the radio shared the morning news, I hustled my child to school, my dog out on a walk, and me into the car for hospice visits … all surrounded with a lot of noise. When I closed the car door for my drive, I realized my resolution: Turn down the sound. READ MORE

—Loren Talbot

News Briefs
Financial Burden at End-of-Life
A United Kingdom study published in BMC Medicine reviewed data from over 450,000 profiles in the UK Biobank cohort linked to mortality registers. The participants had been recruited between 2006 and 2010 and had a mean age of 56.5 years; 13 years later, 33,135 of them had died. The study examined social connections and mortality, looking at one’s frequency of ability to confide in someone close, feelings of loneliness, frequency of visits from loved ones, weekly group activities, and living alone. READ MORE

AI Scores for Palliative Care
According to a recent article in Bloomberg and a piece in Becker’s Health It, New Jersey’s largest health care system, Hackensack Meridian, is using artificial intelligence in palliative care decision-making. The program created an “AI-powered model that can give patients a score and help clinicians intervene during palliative care.” READ MORE

News Brief - Long COVID Mortality Rates Tracked

Long COVID Mortality Rates Tracked
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last month that 3,544 deaths occurred from symptoms related to long COVID from January 2020 through the end of June 2022, and a KFF article states that 4,600 people have died from long COVID since the start of the pandemic. These deaths are affecting primarily older adults who had a history of severe COVID-19 illness. READ MORE

The Final Word

Walking Home
by Marie Howe
Everything dies, I said. How had that started? A tree? The winter? Not me, she said. And I said, Oh yeah? And she said, I’m reincarnating. Ha, she said, See you in a few thousand years! Why years, I wondered, why not minutes? Days? She found that so funny—Ha Ha—doubled over— Years, she said, confidently. I think you and I have known each other a few lifetimes, I said. She said, I have never before been a soul on this earth. (It was cold. We were hungry.) Next time, you be the mother, I said. No way, Jose, she said, as we turned the last windy corner.

Accessible, Equitable, and Compassionate Deathcare

© INELDA 2024 International End-of-Life Doula Association is a
501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization
Tax ID#: 47-3023741

Email us: [email protected] | Phone: 201-540-9049

Donate to INELDA

CONNECT WITH US

[BACK TO TOP]