Recommended Reading

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The Hospice Journey Handbook: Your Complete Guide Through the Hospice Experience

Between Life and Death: A Gospel-Centered Guide to End-of-Life Medical Care

It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand

Bearing the Unbearable: Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief

Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved

A Matter of Death and Life: Love, Loss and What Matters in the End

When Breath Becomes Air

The Art of Dying

Creating Moments of Joy Along the Alzheimer’s Journey: A Guide for Families and Caregivers, Fifth Edition, Revised and Expanded

Death Is But a Dream: Finding Hope and Meaning at Life’s End

Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness, Needs, and Communications of the Dying

How Do I Know You? Dementia at the End of Life

The Eleventh Hour: A Caring Guideline for the Hours to Minutes Before Death

By Your Side, A Guide for Caring for the Dying at Home

Living Well to Die Well – A Guide for Terminally Ill People and Their Loved Ones

Living with Death and Dying

On Death and Dying: What the Dying Have to Teach Doctors, Nurses, Clergy and Their Own Families

On Grief and Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief Through the Five Stages of Loss

Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief

It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand

The Dying Process: Your Essential Guide To Understanding Signs, Symptoms & Changes At The End Of Life

Compassion Crossing Academy — Free and paid online courses are available to teach caregivers, nurses, social workers, chaplains, end-of-life advocates, and educators, including death doulas, how to confidently coordinate complex care.

Bridges to Eternity: The Compassionate Death Doula Path book series:

Find an End-of-Life Doula

Compassion Crossing, LLC, provides on-site services in Madison County, Kentucky, and offers virtual options if no local provider is available.
Hospice Buddy: Although Jamie Haberman, RN, CHPN, isn’t a certified end-of-life doula, her virtual services are very valuable.
The National End-of-Life Doula Alliance (NEDA) Directory
Death Doula Directory
The International End-of-Life Doula Association (INDELA) Directory

Currently, there is no official organization regulating end-of-life doulas (EOLDs). Keep in mind that some listed EOLDs in directories might no longer be practicing, so verifying their current status is essential.

End-of-Life Doula Schools

The following are end-of-life (aka death doula) schools for those interested in becoming an end-of-life doula:

The International End-of-Life Doula Association (INELDA)
University of Vermont. End-of-Life Doula School
Heart Bridge Holistic Training and Mentorship
National End-of-Life Doula Alliance (NEDA): It is not a school, but it provides a certification pathway.
Compassion Crossing Academy: While it’s not a dedicated death-doula school, it offers distinctive classes that can help a death doula expand their business. It’s a valuable resource for those eager to grow and deepen their knowledge in this meaningful field.

Remember that there is no official accrediting body for end-of-life doula programs. Certification only shows you’ve completed an unaccredited program and received a graduation certificate. It’s advisable to have discovery sessions with any death doula school you’re considering — regardless of whether it’s listed here — to see if it meets your needs. Also, ask questions and contact references, such as former students, to assess whether the school gave you a solid foundation to start your own death doula practice.

Death Doula Alliances and Collectives

Please note that some members listed in a specific collective or alliance might no longer be active.

End-of-Life-Doula Articles

Caregiver Support Book Series

The 36-Hour Day: A Family Guide to Caring for People Who Have Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementias

Caregiver Support Book Series

Dementia Caregiver Essentials: Comprehensive Guide for Dementia Care (one book that contains the ten books below for less than one-third the price of all ten)

Gone from My Sight: The Dying Experience

Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End

Empowering Excellence in Hospice: A Nurse’s Toolkit for Best Practices book series

The best symptom management book the author has read: Notes on Symptom Control in Hospice & Palliative Care

Holistic Nurse: Skills for Excellence book series