INELDA’s Framework Redefined
by Douglas Simpson
After a collaborative team effort, I have the honor to share the new, vision | mission |and values of the organization. These new organizational principles reflect the work that we have been doing internally and have begun initiating externally in the communities we engage with.
We are charged with our new vision of ensuring that all individuals have accessible, equitable, and compassionate deathcare that holistically affirms one’s humanity and supports end-of-life choices. These tenets guide our work and daily decision-making. We acknowledge that people die in all types of places and that end-of-life doulas can play a vital role for the dying individual everywhere.
Our mission is to encourage the presence of end-of-life doulas by normalizing death, dying, and grief through conscientious education and stewardship, and by fostering community and advocacy. INELDA has taken steps to support those who traditionally may not have access to compassionate support at the end of life.
We have restructured our training curriculum, now based on INELDA’s nine doula principles that provide the structure for how we teach. This foundation provides the insights that INELDA believes are essential to show up to do this work of humanity.
Our education and shared learning spaces are anchored by a group of passionate and inclusive educators who bring years of experience in hospice, nursing, chaplaincy, psychotherapy, education, and supporting the dying. INELDA educators have worked in intensive care units, delivery rooms, private homes, hospices, AIDS service organizations, and many other spaces where people go to receive support.
INELDA’s stewardship in this field is deeply rooted in our appreciation of the work that has been done since the beginning of time in all places and all cultures. This has led to a year-long approach to developing new partnerships and establishing relationships with other organizations embedded in this important work. We welcome your insights for new relationships and collaborations from within our community and beyond.
The work we have embarked on in our commitment to community and advocacy has led us to provide grants supporting the education of incarcerated individuals providing care for their fellow inmates at the end of life. It has allowed us to offer pro bono training, support, and mentoring to a California hospice dedicated for people with a terminal illness who are experiencing homelessness. We also participate in the People Experiencing Homelessness (PEH) Project in collaboration with national and regional organizations serving the homeless, with focus on gaining insight from lived experience about what is needed to address the service gap for people who are unhoused, terminally ill, and unable to access compassionate and supported end-of-life care. Our commitment to community has also led our efforts to increase accessibility to our offerings through a scholarship program that ensures cost will not be a barrier to qualified learners who are called to doula work.
The work we have embarked on in our commitment to community and advocacy has led us to provide grants supporting the education of incarcerated individuals providing care for their fellow inmates at the end of life. It has allowed us to offer pro bono training, support, and mentoring to a California hospice dedicated for people with a terminal illness who are experiencing homelessness. We also participate in the People Experiencing Homelessness (PEH) Project in collaboration with national and regional organizations serving the homeless, with focus on gaining insight from lived experience about what is needed to address the service gap for people who are unhoused, terminally ill, and unable to access compassionate and supported end-of-life care. Our commitment to community has also led our efforts to increase accessibility to our offerings through a scholarship program that ensures cost will not be a barrier to qualified learners who are called to doula work.
Our values begin with CARE. We not only see these as values for our internal community, but also for the organization collectively—for learners and members. We invite you to consider the strong intention behind these values and hope that they resonate with the care you give.
At INELDA our approach is to encourage cultural humility and respect. We embody an ethical and accessible stance. We work in a collaborative environment supported by reputable colleagues, and we hold ourselves accountable for our actions and results. We believe that our organization must be always evolving and willing to be risk-taking in order to be an advocate for the dying and to work toward a compassionate and equitable death for all. All these values have been integrated into the work we do throughout the organization and the way we foster community.
We acknowledge that this role has been held by many individuals since people have lived in communities. Our intention is to offer INELDA’s guiding principles, vision, and mission as a tool to those interested in the work. We hope that when you show up in communities and spaces as doulas and caregivers, the services you will provide are through the lens of honoring and affirming the client’s or loved one’s humanity.