End-of-Life Doula and Death Care Services
Practical, emotional, and spiritual care before, during, and after death, including home funerals, after-death care, and funeral guidance.
A steady presence in life’s most tender moments
Death and dying bring practical decisions, emotional challenges, and questions about what matters most. As an end-of-life doula (sometimes called a death doula), spiritual care practitioner, and funeral guide, I provide non-medical support before, during, and after death.
Whether you’re planning ahead, approaching the end of life, caring for someone who is dying, or arranging a farewell, I can help you understand your options, make informed choices, and put your wishes into practice. My services include end-of-life planning, companionship, spiritual care, home vigils, after-death care, and funeral guidance.
I’m based in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, and offer in-person support across Melbourne, with planning and consultations also available online. My support is shaped by your values, beliefs, relationships, and preferences, and I work alongside families, palliative care teams, and funeral providers.
How I can support you in Melbourne and online
I offer support at every stage, tailored to your needs, circumstances, and wishes.
End-of-life planning
Making plans ahead of time helps ensure your preferences are understood and gives the people around you more confidence when decisions need to be made.
I can help you:
- Explore your wishes and priorities for end-of-life care.
- Understand and prepare advance care planning documents.
- Talk with family, friends, or others in your life about dying and death.
- Consider where and how you’d prefer to be cared for.
- Record your wishes for what happens after death.
- Explore funeral, burial, cremation, and memorial options.
- Identify practical arrangements and resources.
You don’t need to be seriously ill or approaching death to begin these conversations. Planning ahead is for anyone, at any age.
Companionship and support for the dying
When someone is approaching the end of life, I provide non-medical support to the person who is dying and to the people around them, whether at home, in hospital, in a hospice, or in residential aged care.
This may include:
- Companionship and attentive listening.
- Emotional and spiritual care, whatever your beliefs.
- Space to explore questions about meaning, relationships, mortality, and unfinished business.
- Helping families understand what to expect as death approaches.
- Bedside vigils and presence in the final hours.
- Support for family members and carers, including time to rest.
- Creating personal rituals, if wanted.
- Working alongside palliative care teams and other health professionals.
My approach draws on my experience in hospital pastoral and spiritual care, and on my end-of-life doula training.
Home funerals and after-death care
Families have more choice about caring for someone after death than many people realise. With the right preparation and support, it may be possible for a person to stay at home after death for a time, so family and friends can gather, say goodbye, and take part in their care.
I can help you explore and arrange after-death care, including:
- Guidance on what happens in the first hours after a death.
- Washing, dressing and anointing the person who has died.
- Supporting family members who want to take part in body care.
- Preparing a peaceful space for a home vigil.
- Keeping the body cool and cared for at home.
- Simple ceremonies or rituals around washing, anointing, and farewell.
- Liaising with funeral directors and other professionals about transfers and arrangements.
Caring for the dead can be practical, intimate, and meaningful. You might take part directly, be present and watch, or leave the work to others. There’s no single right way.
Funeral guidance and ceremonies
Funerals and farewells take many forms, from traditional services to small gatherings at home or ceremonies created entirely by the family.
As a funeral guide, I help you understand your options, make informed decisions, and create a farewell that reflects the person who has died.
Support may include:
- Exploring funeral and memorial options, including family-led funerals.
- Explaining funeral arrangements, processes, and costs.
- Liaising with funeral directors, cemeteries, crematoria, and celebrants.
- Planning personalised ceremonies, vigils, and farewell rituals.
- Help with readings, music, symbolism, and other ceremonial elements.
- Supporting families who want to organise a funeral themselves.
- Writing and leading a personalised funeral or memorial ceremony, by arrangement.
- Practical and emotional support on the day.
However simple or elaborate, a good farewell is one that feels true to the person and to the people gathered.
My approach to end-of-life and death care
I bring together practical knowledge, professional training, and respect for the personal, cultural, and spiritual dimensions of death and dying.
I believe people deserve clear information, real choices, and the chance to take part in care as much or as little as they wish. My role is to help you understand your options, make informed decisions, and feel supported along the way.
I welcome people of all faiths and none. I especially welcome LGBTQIA+ people, Pagans, witches, and practitioners of other spiritual paths, as well as people in non-traditional relationships and chosen families. I respect the many ways people live, love, grieve, and honour their dead, and I’ll help you shape care and farewells that reflect who you are.
Where specialist expertise, equipment, or services are needed, I work with independent funeral providers and other death care professionals so you get the right support.
About me
I’m Cosette, an end-of-life doula, spiritual care practitioner, and funeral guide based in Melbourne. My work brings together practical end-of-life support, spiritual care, and a commitment to helping people make informed choices about dying, death, and funerals.
I’ve completed end-of-life doula training, including advanced hands-on training in after-death care, home vigils, and funeral arrangements. I also work in pastoral and spiritual care at a Melbourne hospital, supporting people through illness, uncertainty, grief, and major life changes. I facilitate a Life and Death Cafe at the Melbourne Theosophical Society, where people meet to talk openly about death and dying.
My approach is shaped by my professional experience, my love of ritual and ceremony, and my belief that everyone deserves care that respects their identity, relationships, values, and wishes.
What people say
The Life & Death Café is a powerful, poignant and productive exploration into the generally viewed ‘unknown’, but inevitable consequence of life: namely, ‘death’. I’ve found this exploration with both young and old perspectives adds another wonderful, fantastic and practical dimension to my understanding of life and death in a safe, welcoming and conscious space.
The facilitator’s manner and openness to everyone’s contribution. The available literature. The opportunity to hear the experiences of others and to talk about my own.
Memberships & Affiliations
I’m a member of professional and community organisations across end-of-life care, spiritual care, and death care. These reflect my commitment to ethical practice, ongoing learning, and working with others in the field.
Fees and sliding-scale pricing
I want end-of-life and death care support to be accessible, whatever your financial situation, so I offer sliding-scale fees.
Consultations and general doula support: $80 to $120 per hour
Choose the rate that suits your circumstances. No questions asked.
Extended vigils, after-death care, funeral guidance, and ceremonies are quoted individually, depending on what’s needed, the time involved, and any other arrangements. I’ll give you a clear estimate before we begin.
Free introductory chat
We start with a free 15-minute conversation to talk about your situation, see how I might help, and decide whether we’re a good fit.
Frequently asked questions
A death doula, or end-of-life doula, offers non-medical support to people who are dying and to those around them. That can include planning, companionship, spiritual care, vigils, after-death care, and help with funeral choices.
Yes. The two terms are used interchangeably in Australia, along with “death midwife” and “soul midwife”. I use “end-of-life doula” because my support begins well before death and continues after it.
Fees vary between doulas. I charge $80 to $120 per hour on a sliding scale for consultations and general support, and quote individually for vigils, after-death care, and funerals. The first 15-minute chat is free.
In Victoria it is often possible for a person to remain at home for a time after death, with the right preparation and care. I can explain what’s involved, help you prepare, and liaise with a funeral director where needed.
Not for everything. Families can take on many parts of a funeral themselves, and some choose a funeral director only for specific tasks such as transport or cremation bookings. I can help you work out which approach suits you.
No. A doula provides non-medical support and works alongside palliative care teams, GPs, and nurses, not instead of them.
Not at all. I support people of all faiths, spiritual traditions, and none, and I follow your lead on what matters to you.
Planning, consultations, and ongoing support can happen online from anywhere. In-person support is available across Melbourne; get in touch if you’re further afield.
Related reading from the blog
Articles on end-of-life planning, caring for the dying and the dead, funeral choices, and the personal and spiritual sides of death and grief.
‘How to Die in the 21st Century’, a gentle primer
A review of Hannah Gould’s How to Die in the 21st Century, an accessible Australian introduction to death, dying, funerals, and end-of-life planning.
The Death Cafe: vibrant, powerful conversations, coffee, and biscuits
Take part in a Life and Death Cafe, one of Melbourne’s free, in-person gatherings where people meet to talk openly about death, dying, and what really matters.
Knowledge, guidance, care: the value of an end-of-life doula
What is an end-of-life doula? Learn more about the practitioners who provide non-medical support to individuals nearing the end of life and those around them.
Urgent end-of-life support
If death is very near or has just happened, please call or text me on 0468 638 905.
If I can’t answer, leave a message and I’ll call you back as soon as I can.
Let's talk
Whether you’re planning ahead, supporting someone at the end of life, or thinking about funeral options, I’d be glad to talk about how I can help. We can start with a free 15-minute chat to explore your needs and answer your questions.