Project Summary
This project aims to improve community-based palliative care by integrating doulas into the care process. Objectives include assessing death literacy and coping among health professional students, developing a learning module and simulation, evaluating the effectiveness of doulas in palliative care and organizing community dialogues to exchange knowledge and showcase palliative care programs at Fanshawe College.
This project has three main activities: Activity 1: Survey of death literacy and death anxiety on campus (completed); Activity 2 Exploring the integration of doulas in community-based palliative care: A mixed-methods evaluation study (in process), and Activity 3: Community conversation/knowledge exchange event.
The Challenge
As the need for comprehensive palliative care grows exponentially, the team at Fanshawe College sought to address disparities in community-based palliative care by enhancing death literacy and integrating doulas into the care process.
Our Fanshawe faculty who attended the No Barriers Here training are the only trained facilitators in an academic institution across Canada. This training will leverage research activities and benefit from the evidence-informed methodology developed by the UK team.
The Solution
The solution involved conducting an online survey on death literacy and anxiety with 378 students, which provided valuable insights for educational responses. Faculty and external partners participated in the No Barriers Here training workshop, collaborating with research partners from the UK. An ethics application is in progress, with plans for community-based workshops to address end-of-life planning gaps. Activities to introduce the community to end-of-life doulas are underway. Project team members attended the first national conference on medical assistance in dying in September 2024, opening up more opportunities for collaboration across institutions and organizations. A website is being developed with the help of recent Fanshawe marketing graduates. Additionally, a co-operative student created two highlight reels showcasing the research activities.
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