A most interesting piece on BBC News described the work of ‘death doulas’, a role, sometimes known as ‘soul midwives’, which has been growing in popularity in the UK over the last 10 years.
The term ‘doula’ derives from Ancient Greek, where it referred to a female slave. Today it more typically refers to a non-medical professional who provides guidance and companionship for the service of others through a significant health-related experience, such as pregnancy, childbirth, miscarriage, early parenthood, mourning or death. Emma Clare, chief executive of End of Life Doula UK, quoted in the article, says 114 doulas joined her organisation in 2025, a big increase on previous years.
The article mainly records people’s experiences, both as doulas and as their clients. It concludes with a short piece about Marian Krawczyk, a researcher in end-of-life care, who says the role needs to evolve as the way many people die these days has changed, with fewer dying of short infectious illnesses or accidents and more people living for many years with life-limiting diseases. “There are also now expectations of lifestyle choices in every aspect of our life,” she says, “including the ability to craft our own dying”.
The article also quotes Dr Paul Perkins, chief medical director at palliative care and bereavement at the Sue Ryder charity, who believes the UK healthcare system can be hard to navigate, and that those who are dying should be helped to “have the best quality of life possible”, adding, “so they can spend time with the people who bring them joy.”
Here in Southern Spain, the Malaga Chaplaincy spends a lot of time with elderly and dying people. It could be some of the approach a doula might take, might be of value within our ministry.
Read the article on BBC News here. Read about the development of the concept of ‘death doula’ in Wikipedia, here.