Doula Services | Doula Connections | End of Life Planning

At Doula Connections we believe that everyone is an individual and…

You should be provided the opportunity to be heard, your wishes and preferences noted, and wherever possible your instructions followed. We believe that people have the right to decide what support they want at the end of their life. There is no ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to life-limiting illness, dying, and death. We are just as much individuals in our dying and death as we are when we’re healthy and well. Life should be lived right until the end and our individuality doesn’t disappear with our last breath and heartbeat. We can support you to uncover, plan for and navigate your end-of-life or support you and your family to work through any end of life challenges that arise.

End of Life Planning At Any Stage

End of life planning includes:

Review of legal roles and arrangements. Is what’s desired, needed or required complete and up to date?
Advance care planning/directives
Creating legacy, gifts, and memories
End of life plan – non medical – wishes and preferences
Funeral care plan/after death care plan
End of life planning: wake, funeral, memorial, burial, cremation, eco-friendly and sustainable options and alternatives
Provide information on available choices & laws for after death body care, funeral, burial & cremation practices in NSW
Minimising costly end of life funeral/arrangements that are not desired by the client, reducing costs while respecting client wishes and values. The information provides choice.

Support to Stay at Home

(Care After Hospital, Treatments, etc)

Life-limiting conditions
Ageing
Dementia
Terminal illness
Strategies, information and support to assist clients to remain independent in their homes wherever possible
Assist clients to communicate with their health care team and service providers and provide advocacy where needed
Companioning to assist with medical appointments and day-to-day support and social stimulation and related needs
Arranging social activities and providing or coordinating transport to social events
Logistical support e.g. helping to source equipment, resources and services for illness and at end of life

Assistance setting up phone and internet communication services to keep in touch with those close to them that may be spread widely
A worker to assist with any end of life related support
In-home respite for family members
Assisting clients prepare to move into residential care or transition from home to hospice
Decluttering of home and possessions
Helping to create legacy, gifts and memories
Letter writing, story collection, labelling photos
Additional individualised services considered on request

Recent Diagnosis and Treatment

Advocacy – assistance to communicate with your care and support team, doctors and palliative care team, family near and far, friends, neighbours, hospice services, funeral directors and more
Holistic support / treatment plan: assist the individual and the family with information and arrangements if this is something they would like to pursue
Source translation services to facilitate communication with non-English speaking clients and their families
Accompanying clients to medical appointments
Everything as noted previously

End of Life and Active Dying

Assists in the provision of a private and peaceful ‘space’ and experience for everyone involved. Holding space for others
Explaining how dying may feel and what symptoms they may experience
Answer questions about the dying process and empower family members to create the kind of environment that the person dying has requested
End of life doulas can guide the family and the individual through the dying process.
Encouraging loved ones to provide touch and affection to the dying person
Help families who are separated by distance, to ensure that their person will not be alone when they die

Home Based After Death Care

Bereavement support
Helping loved ones to take care of their person after death in the home with cooling plates and other relevant equipment, to bathe and dress their person if this is what is wanted
Assist with funeral care or after death service
Assist the family with wrapping up the loved one’s affairs. This could include closing accounts, assisting with the funeral, and handling the bureaucracy that comes with dying
Planning and supporting arranging memorials, scattering of ashes, etc
Follow-up visits with family members in the weeks and months after the death to talk about the experience if this is requested

Our Community Support and Education

Education sessions for the work team as requested by organisations
Holding Information Days
Facilitate Death Cafes
Help break down the taboo around talking about death
Help communities to become more death literate and death comfortable
Advocate for end of life services required in communities and for individual groups

Doula Services - How they can help