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Iliff Death Care Collective – Fall Course
Foundations of Death Care
End-of-Life Doula Class
Fall 2025 – Now open to register!
Explore our unique approach to building skills and connections for end-of-life care:
Grounded in Justice and Intercultural Competency
Our approach, informed by Iliff School of Theology’s longstanding commitment to justice, means that intercultural competencies are at the center of our approach. We honor the unique and diverse experiences of our participants and clients.
Practice Foundational Somatic Training for Real Self-Care
Embodied awareness matters in end-of-life work. We emphasize the importance of somatic awareness and Polyvagal Theory as crucial for a sustainable end-of-life doula practice, both in helping those we serve and for ourselves.
Focus on Interpersonal Communication
End-of-life care includes not just the dying, but their communities of care and all those who love them. We focus on healthy communication patterns as well as understanding non-verbal cues, as well as family systems dynamics.
Connect with a Diverse Community
This course will connect you with leading scholars, practitioners, spiritual leaders, and thinkers from various backgrounds and perspectives in end-of-life care. Join us to change the narrative around end-of-life care.
Details
- New course material opens every Sunday for 8 weeks starting September 28.
- Weekly live Zoom sessions on Sundays 4:00-6:00 .
- Small group limited to 15 students per cohort.
Total Course Investment
$1600-$2600 for online course; based on sliding scale, see details.
Meet Your Instructor
Meet your teacher, Beth Patterson
Beth Patterson is a palliative care chaplain, presently serving at University of Colorado Health Anschutz, working both inpatient and outpatient (ambulatory clinic) palliative care. She has 35+ years of hospice related experience (bereavement, children’s programs, philanthropy, program design and management).
She completed her palliative care chaplaincy fellowship through the Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) program at UCH in 2020. She has been a clinical chaplain for 12+ years and has board certification pending. Beth is also a palliative care/end of life doula, having trained with the Conscious Dying Institute and INELDA and is a member in good standing with NEDA. She is also affiliated with The Peaceful Presence Project located in Bend, OR.
Beth graduated from Iliff School of Theology in 1995 with a MA in Religious Studies/emphasis on Pastoral Care. She is an endorsed chaplain by the American Humanist Association. Beth is currently learning to be a facilitator with a CU Anschutz phase 2b, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center study of the effects of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy on existential distress in patients with advanced cancer. Beth loves her work and often considers it “play.” As such, her playgrounds are the fields of existential questions, struggle, and exploration of/opening to the unknown.