International End-of-Life Doula Association (INELDA)

For US$0.24 per patient per year, an investment in digital health interventions—telemedicine, chatbots, mobile messaging, and the like—could help prevent more than 2 million deaths from noncommunicable disease. A September report issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Telecommunication Union outlined how digital tools can help support people in minimizing the four greatest risk factors to noncommunicable diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. By addressing tobacco use, diet, alcohol, and physical activity, digital interventions could help combat these conditions, which together are responsible for nearly three-quarters of global deaths annually. “The future of health is digital,” WHO director general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said, stressing that no one organization can implement global digital health tools alone. “We call on governments, partners, and donors to come together, invest strategically, and ensure that these life-saving innovations reach those who need them most.” Digital health interventions can vary by population. In Senegal, for example, the “mRamadan” campaign supports a healthy lifestyle during Ramadan via mobile technology; the program has more than 200,000 users. In Zambia, where more than half the population is rural, a mobile initiative connected patients in remote areas with real-time consultations with health care providers. https://bit.ly/40U2KVN

CaringBridge is a nonprofit, no-cost health platform for family caregivers and the loved ones they support on a health journey. It provides a secure space for users to embrace healing by documenting a health journey, enhancing both emotional health and social support. CaringBridge enables users to communicate seamlessly to update everyone at once in a private space, alleviating the burden of individual updates. Users can write posts, share photos, and coordinate support to foster connection and activate their community. It simplifies the challenging task of seeking practical assistance; CaringBridge makes it easy to ask for help when it’s needed most. Have you used CaringBridge yourself, or followed a loved one's health journey? Share what you appreciated about it in the comments. To learn more or start a page visit the links below. General use: join.caringbridge.org Cancer use: support.caringbridge.org Pediatric use: pediatric.caringbridge.org https://lnkd.in/eYV4jHym

Join us for our November webinar: Muslim Perspectives on Death and Dying with guest speaker Zeyneb Sayilgan, Ph.D. from the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies (ICJS. More info and registration through link.

Religious literacy can be beneficial in your role as an end-of-life doula. Join us to explore the meaningful approach to death and dying for followers of the Muslim faith. Whether you are new to understanding the world’s fastest-growing religion or a Muslim practitioner, this webinar will dive into the practices unique to the religion. Discover how the Prophet Muhammad’s teachings allow an approach to thinking about death and grieving. Explore how Islam allows for death awareness–making it part of the living experience by not denying death but encouraging conversation about human mortality. Muslim scholar Zeyneb Sayilgan, Ph.D. from the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies (ICJS) will share her deep expertise and personal experiences. INELDA educator and hospice nurse navigator, Nzinga El-Mekki Abdullah-Aziz will moderate this conversation, guiding attendees through the end-of-life rituals and customs of the Islamic faith. Mark your calendar, due to the Thanksgiving holiday our November webinar is Thursday the 21st. To learn more and register click https://bit.ly/3YKKtsG

Our November Newsletter is live! Notes for the Journey, INELDA’s monthly newsletter, showcases articles, interviews, and practical tips for an audience interested in end-of-life issues, focusing on our doula community. We cover a broad range of topics, including current news, doula profiles, personal memoirs, media reviews, Q&As, self-care tips, poetry, and more. Subscribe here! https://bit.ly/4g0hlUU

Our October Toolbox Tip for Doulas comes from INELDA-trained doula and member Katharine Stewart, "In regards to the client who is ready to die but doesn’t meet the requirements for MAiD—I would encourage them to reach out to Final Exit Network to inquire about its guide program and whether they would be eligible to receive education from the organization. If they were accepted to the guide program, you could still work with this client on planning their final weeks, days, legacy, etc." Read more ToolBox Tips here https://bit.ly/3Xdwrwk

"My experience has taught me that our lives, dreams, and relationships all amount to one basic thing in the end—love," shares Lisa Kaufman founder of SeniorCare Options and INELDA's October Doula Profile. "Encouraging families to be open to the love and expression with the departing loved ones is a gift, and the one true thing that matters above all else." Meet Lisa, learn more about SeniorCare Options, and read her Q&A here https://bit.ly/4fpLUSN

Are you a spouse caregiver, or know one? “Those caring for an ill or disabled life partner,” shares Well Spouse Association, “face unique issues in addition to the concerns and stresses faced by other family caregivers. WSA unites these caregivers, so they can support each other.” The Well Spouse Association (WSA) is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is providing peer support to current and former spouses and partners of those with any chronic illness or disability. The WSA membership program offers support groups (both in-person and via telephone), an online chat room and forum, and mentors. WSA also offers a newsletter. Well Spouse was founded in 1988 by author and spousal caregiver Zane Kotker, whose husband was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. With much encouragement, she wrote a book, Mainstay: For the Well Spouse of the Chronically Ill (using the pseudonym Maggie Strong), sharing her experiences as a well spouse. Since that time, Well Spouse’s mission has remained the same—to provide peer-to-peer support to the wives, husbands, and partners of the chronically ill and/or disabled. A key part of the organization’s mission is to help the general public and policymakers understand the challenges of the well spouse population, including increased funding for home care and reviewing Medicare stipulations. Click our link for more https://bit.ly/3Ys7xej

INELDA attended the The Coalition to Transform Advanced Care (C-TAC) National Leadership Summer this week, a conference to connect changemakers working to improve quality of life for people living with serious illness, and their caregivers. As a member of C-TAC, we lend our voice to advocate for the importance of advance care planning, doula integration in the health care system, and increased access to social workers through Medicare billing, and we learn what other partner organizations are researching in the serious illness space. This organization and annual conference has been instrumental to our growth as an organization, both by showcasing dynamic and cutting-edge speakers and by the support it has offered INELDA through quarterly check-ins on our own policy and partner interests. We had meaningful conversations with Cal and Laura from Healwell and enjoyed hearing Senator Angela V. McNight speak. Learn more here https://bit.ly/40d7YeK