To the Editor:

We appreciate the article in the Jan. 31 issue, “A conversation about the role of Death Doulas”.

We would like to clarify this sentence in the article, “…the care that death doulas offer is more personal than what hospice provides.” Hospice is a long-standing and well-recognized service. All hospice staff and volunteers provide very personalized, compassionate, skilled care, as other home health care services do.

End-of-Life Death Doulas are a continuum to end-of-life care. We as EOLDs can partner with Hospice, Home Health Care, funeral directors, and families, to help fill gaps in care and services.

Our country’s aging population is growing rapidly. EOLD care is an emerging field, that will be critical as 72 million people will be over the age of 65 by the year 2030. (Census.gov)

It takes a village, and End-of-life death Doulas, like Birth Doulas, provide a supportive role in the care over our lifespan.

Janet Willie, LMT, LPN,

Bethel

Darlene Beck,

Bethel

Lee Berry, RN,

Sumner

Certified End of Life Doulas