Death, Grief, and Funerals in the COVID age 

Optimal strategies for helping people develop new rituals to honor those who die during the COVID-19 era.

 

Grief and death are on everyone’s mind. For most of us the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated death and collective grief is unprecedented. Combined with social distancing protocol, end-of-life issues, death care, and grief have become even more complex.

Navigating these restrictions—and the sheer volume of loss—can feel overwhelming. How do you comfort a patient when their family can’t be present? Are you supposed to bring up advanced directives on intake or wait until the person is facing their death? If we can’t hold a traditional funeral, how do we mark someone’s passing?

The Virtual Funeral Collective banded together as part of a larger initiative called the Global COVID-19 Relief Coalition.  The Global COVID-19 Relief Coalition is a 501c3 project of The Giving Back Fund bringing together world leading labs and organizations to provide solutions for the current COVID-19 pandemic.

This Paper contains a collection of resources and best practices from our collective to help you support your clients, patients, communities, and yourself during this stressful time.

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Virtual Funeral Collective.

Consisting of a group of over seventy doctors, nurses, scholars, grief therapists, psychologists, funeral home directors, hospice workers, thanatologists, chaplains, hospital administrators and end-of life-practitioners from around the globe, the Virtual Funeral Collective is a group of specialists who work with dying, death, and grief on a daily basis. We are uniquely situated to offer solutions, resources, and training to those dealing with dying, death, and disposition issues stemming from COVID-19.

Paper Editors: Candi K. Cann, Ph.D, Michael Hebb, Megan Devine, LCPC, Alica Forneret, Allison Gilbert, Lashanna Williams, Stephanie Gailing, Silvia Perez-Protto, M.D., Rana Adwish, M.D.

"Attention to the sacred nature of death and dying, and attending to each other in both joy and suffering is what we are all called to do. Resources to help us do this with greater clarity, purpose and peace are essential. The offering here is one that builds on the expertise of many, with the intention of keeping us all whole through the transitions ahead."

RANA AWDISH, M.D.

“Representing the collective effort of over seventy experts in the End of Life space, this paper offers a list of tips and resources to manage dying, death and grief in the COVID era. With previous work written from a mostly white (and largely Protestant) point of view, this resource is truly one of the most diverse resources offering an intersectional perspective, while presenting a collaborative solution-based resource to meet the needs of those grieving in the pandemic.”

CANDI CANN, PH D.

Contact

For inquiries, please contact:

Michael Hebb michael.hebb@round.glass

Candi K. Cann candi_cann@baylor.edu