Kim Mooney CV

Kim Mooney Professional CV

Kim Mooney

Professional Profile
  • Twenty-seven years of experience locally and nationally as a health
    professional/educator with expertise in end-of-life issues and grief education, at a
    local and national level.
  • Author and presenter of award-winning community end-of-life education programs.
  • Exceptional skills in the areas of leadership, strategic planning, program
    development and coordination, education and public relations.
  • Engaging and articulate presenter, facilitator and trainer.
  • Special training in crisis intervention and disaster management.
  • Experience and skill in developing collaborative processes and teamwork with
    community organizations.
  • Seasoned Community and State Consultant at large for end-of-life and grief
    resources
Professional Experience

Principal and Owner of Practically Dying, LLC, a consulting firm and community
educational organization providing end-of-life consulting, grief education and support,
and death education. (2014 to present)

  • Work with clients using a proprietary system for completing advance care
    planning: Combined Advance Directives Set .™
  • Provide presentations on dying, death and grief to corporations, community
    groups, residential facilities and organizations.
  • Design programs for death education and grief support.
  • Work with media (TV and radio) to provide death education.
  • Create and deliver educational programs to medical practices, faith-based
    communities and residential communities’ staff and leadership
  • Facilitate grief education for helping professionals.
  • Consult with organizations regarding support for grieving employees and clientele.
  • Consult and act as resource to help terminally ill people and their families
    navigate health crises and dying process.
  • Facilitate death debriefings for corporations, hospitals, hospices and other
    community organizations experiencing sudden or expected staff deaths
  • Create and host radio and TV shows on dying, death and grief
  • Work as Education Consultant for The Conversation Project in Boulder County
  • Contract as educational consultant for grant programs writing Grief and End-of-life
    modules for programs
  • Director of Community Education, TRU Community Care, (formerly HospiceCare) (2007-
    2014)

    • Created and presented community education efforts on end-of-life issues, advance
      care planning, end-of-life ethics, caregiving, death and grief topics.
      Responsibilities include strategic planning, program development, networking,
      scheduling, media relations and project coordination.
    • Conferred with medical providers, school districts, faith communities, mental
      health organizations and community professionals to determine community needs,
      identify goals and ensure success of programs.
    • Coordinated telephone and email communications with physicians, educators, law
      enforcement and community representatives, and website inquiries.
    • Created presentation pre- and post-measures to evaluate programs and outcomes.
    • Established network systems.
  • Created presentation materials: PowerPoint presentations, class curricula, and
    scripts for radio program and TV show.
  • Director of Grief Services, HospiceCare of Boulder and Broomfield Counties (1992 to
    2006)

    • Developed diversified programs for support of hospice families and community at
      large through groups, classes, counseling formats, crisis intervention.
    • Organized and implemented grief counseling education for community providers.
    • Developed program and trained educators in community crisis intervention.
    • Consultant and responder to school districts, faith communities, and medical, civic
      and community organizations in death, trauma and grief situations.
    • Developed and implemented a national bereavement database.
Education and Professional Development
  • Graduated Behavioral Sciences, Independent Study program – Life Transitions,
    Regis University, Denver, Colorado, 1997, Summa Cum Laude
  • Community Crisis Response Team Training, National Organization of Victim
    Assistance
  • International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Core and Advanced Trainings
  • Certification in Thanatology, Association for Death Education and Counseling
Advisory Positions
  • Member, National Hospice Organization, Council of Hospice Professionals (1993-
    2012)
  • Board Member, Association for Death Education and Counseling (2012-2014)
  • Member, TRU Community Care (formerly HospiceCare) ethics committee (1999-
    2014)
  • Colorado Center for Hospice and Palliative Care: Bereavement Section leader;
    Member of Education Committee and Advance Care Planning Statewide Education
    Project (2004-2012)
  • Advisory Board Member, Widowed Persons Service (1995-2008)
  • Founder/Board President/Member, Conversations on Death (a community death
    education forum) (2011-2016)
  • Boulder County Senior Law Day Planning Committee (2011-2013)
  • Committee member, Boulder Community Hospital ethics committee (2013-2018)
  • Board Member, Colorado Health Ethics Forum (2014-15)
  • Committee member, Latino End-of-Life Task Force Boulder County (2014-2018)
  • Committee Member, Colorado Advance Directives Consortium (2010-2018)
  • Advisory Board Member, The Conversation Project in Boulder County (2013-2018)
  • Member, The Denver Hospice ethics committee (2015-2018)
  • Board Member, The Natural Funeral, a Living Arts Center for Holistic End-of-Life
    Education and Natural Funerary Care (2017-2018)
Awards
  • Certificate of Recognition, St. Vrain Valley School District, for development of
    Tragedy Response Plan implemented by entire district (1995)
  • Award for Innovation, Colorado Hospice Organization, for Recovering Balance After
    Death, co-sponsored weekend family bereavement camp (1997)
  • National Federation of Community Broadcasters Golden Reel Award for best public
    affairs series, for Seeking a Good Death, co-sponsored 8-week radio series on death
    and grief (with local public radio station KGNU) (1998)
  • Award for Best Community Education Program, Colorado Hospice Organization (1998)
  • Innovation in Practice, Initiating Use of Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment in
    Colorado, as chairman of Colorado Hospice and Palliative Care Organization Education
    Task Force (2011)
  • Public Radio News Directors Award Winner, KGNU series episode “I Ain’t Got No Body”
    (creative body dispositions), First Place Outstanding Radio Call-in Special (2016)
  • 2018 Community Educator award from the international Association for Death Education and Counseling

PUBLICATIONS
The Forgotten Power of Death, Boulder County Hospice Magazine, Fall, 1993
Hospice – Helping to Heal a Broken Heart, Boulder County Hospice Magazine, Winter, 1994
Original Halloween: Healthier and Better than the Sequels, Boulder Daily Camera newspaper and the Longmont Times-Call newspaper, October, 1995
Love Does Not End with Death, Hospice of Boulder County Quarterly Magazine, Winter 1996
On Grief, Care Connections Aging Services Quarterly Newsletter, September, 2000
Hospice Lessons, Spiritual Eldering Institute, Fall, 2000 Reflections, monthly column answering questions on dying, death and grief, Women’s Magazine (2000-2001)
Recognizing and Respecting Traumatic Responses to the Events of September 11, printed in Colorado Hospice Organization newsletter, Parents of Murdered Children newsletter, Aging Services Care Connection newsletter, Community Shares newsletter, ADEC and National Hospice Org websites.
Responding to the Emotional Impact of the Tsunami Disaster, NHPCO Newsline Insights Edition, March 2005
Caregiver Grief, Care Conn, March, 2006
Share The Care: We Can Do It Together, Care Connection, December 2008
Working with Grief, chapter of Preparing to Die: Practical Advice and Spiritual Wisdom from the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition.
Andrew Holocek (2013) Shambhala Publications
Death Cafes, Care Connection 2014
Preparing for the Inevitable, Financial Planning Association of CO website (2016)
Hospice and Palliative Care: Options for Care at the End of Life chapter, Colorado
Senior Law Handbook (2017 edition)

Selected Range of Presentations

• Work with Kids and Adolescents, St Vrain School District (1995)
• Women and Grief: Losses in Relationship, Life and Health, Mile-High Council on Alcoholism, Denver, CO, March (1995)
• Self-Care Working in an Environment of Constant Loss, Boulder County Aging Services County Resource Specialists (1995)
• Grief and Recovery, Substance Abuse Counselors of Colorado (1995)
• Resocializing After a Loss, AARP Widowed Persons Service (1996)
• Preparing for The End of Life, Kaiser Permanente patient support group (1998)
• Hospice as Buddhist Practice, ADEC National Conference (1998)
• Working With Our Own Losses, Boulder Police Department, Victim Advocates (1998)
• Grief as a Cultural Issue, Regis University Death and Dying class (1998)
• Dia de la Muerta, Collage Children’s Museum (1998)
• Working with the Media on Stories Involving Hospice Patients and Families, Colorado Hospice Organization Fall Conference (1998)
• Grief In The Workplace, Boulder Community Hospital (1999)
• Supporting Clients after Homicide Loss, Longmont Coalition for Women in Crisis (2000)
• Dying and Grief in the Body, Southwestern College of Acupuncture, (2000)
• Supporting Dying and Grieving Clients, Boulder Senior Center Senior Peer Counseling Program (2000)
• Coping with the Holidays, Widowed Persons Service (2000)
• Spiritual Issues working with Victims of Crime, Colorado Organization of Victim Assistance Conference (2000)
• Advance Directives, Naropa University Gerontology Program (2000)
• Grief Issues Leaving a Cult, Cults, Gang and Hate Groups Mtn States Conf (2001)
• End of Life Issues, Mary Sandow Independent Living Facility (2001)
• Grief in the Workplace, University of Colorado at Boulder (2001)
• Death Response, Office Victim Assistance Program (2001) Spring Conference
• Developing Community Bereavement Programs, Colorado Hospice Org.(2001) Spring Conference
• Bringing Heart and Soul into Elder Communities, with Rabbi Zalman Schacter-Shalomi, Bill Thomas and Ram Dass, community presentation (2001)
• Self-Care Issues Working with Abortion Clients, Boulder Valley Women’s Clinic (2001)
• Grief and Loss in Acute Care Settings, North Suburban Hospital Chaplain Interns Program (2001)
• How to Work with Dying and Grieving Clients, Boulder County Mental Health (2001)
• Group Support Formats for Homicide Bereft, Boulder County District Attorney’s Victim Assistance Program (2001)
• Grief and Women’s Spirituality, Life Coaching for Women (2001)
• Adult Parent Loss, HCBBC Educational Series (2003)
• Beyond Our Best Guess: Clinical Assessment for Bereaved Clients, Colorado Hospice
Organization State Conference (2003)
• Current Grief Theories, HCBBC Educational Series for psychotherapists (2004)
• Grieving with Clients, Colorado Association of Psychotherapists (2004)
• Working with Multiple Losses, Boulder Community Hospital Cancer Care staff (2004-2006)
• Grief Rituals video, ADEC Conference (2009) (on Youtube)
• Family Grief Issues, The Counseling Center (2006)
• Supporting Clients Dealing with Death, Boulder County Bar Association (2006)
• Losses Along the Way: Recognizing the Grief of Caregivers, NHPCO Volunteer/Caregiving Conf (2006)
• The Moral Distress of Hospice Work, Colorado Hospice Organization Conference (2006)
• Strong Broken Hearts: Animal Euthanasia in Your Work. Longmont Human Society (2006)
• Who Cares for the Caregiver: Strategies for the Long Haul, BC Caregivers Symposium (2006)
• Keeping a Good Disposition Even When You’re Dead: A Discussion of Different Forms of
Body Disposition, Longmont Senior Center (2007)
• Keynote: Caregivers “R” Us, Boulder County Aging Services Caregiver Wellness Days (2007)
• Co-presenter, Bridging the Gap: Clinicians Enter the Research Dialogue from a Practice
Perspective, ADEC Preconference Workshop (2007)
• Keynote: Clowning Around, Boulder County Aging Services Caregiver Wellness Days (2008)
• Keynote: Colorado Donor Alliance Donor Family Tribute event 2007 and 2008
• When Family Fades: Creating an Unexpected Life When You Move into a Residential Community, Golden West Retirement Community (2008)
• Talking About the Hard Stuff: End of Life Choices. Variety of community groups (2009)
• Aging and Dying Well, Channel 8, Boulder Colorado (on Youtube)
• Building the Bridge: End of Life Care Isn’t about the Last Two Weeks, Boulder County and Broomfield County Senior Centers (2009)
• If I Can’t Speak, How Will they Know What I Need?: Selecting a Health Care Agent, various community groups (2009)
• Meeting People Where We Are: Living Both Sides of the Hospice Care Experience, NHPCO Annual Conference (2009)
• Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment, community presentations (2010-2014) (video on
www.compassionandchoicesboulder.org)
• Moral Distress: Clash of Practice and Principles, Ethics Committee, Boulder Community Hospital (2009)
• Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones, But So Can CPR: Understanding medical technologies at end of life, various communities groups (2009)
• Making it Work: Strategies for Dealing with Workplace Loss, various community groups (2009)
• Knowing Where to Turn: a journey through end-of-life care, Frasier Meadows (2010)
• Ethics at the End of Life, Folks in Aging, Boulder County Senior Peer Counselors (2011)
• Juggling Work and Home: Caregiver Stress, University of Colorado (2011)
• Dying in America, Naropa University (2011)
• Balancing Work and Home for Working Caregivers, Colorado EAPA (2012)
• Keynote: The Journey and the Path, Clergy and Faith Leadership, Office on Aging of Larimer County (2012)
• Reaching out to our Military Men, Women and Familiies, ADEC conference (2013)
• Death Traditions Around the World, Compassion and Choices Boulder 2014 (video on
www.compassionandchoicesboulder.org)
• When You’re Supposed to be Happy But You’re Not: Coping with Holidays, Association of Death Education and Counseling webinar (2013)
• Keynote: Talking About Dying Won’t Kill You, Boulder County Senior Law Day (2013)
• The Conversation Project, Boulder Senior Law Day (2013)
• There Are Only Two Things Certain In Life: Taxes and that Other Thing. Community presentation with stories from hospice staff and patients. (2014)
• Grief as Path, Nevei Kodesh , a Jewish Renewal community (2014)
• Death Cafes development and facilitation in Boulder County for general public, Jewish community, Buddhist community, GLBT community, residential communities (2013- 2017)
• The Story of Our Mortality: Who Teaches Us How To Die? Conversations on Death presentation (September 2015)
• Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment, HealthTeamWorks, focused on independent medical practices (August 2016)
• Waking Up Old, community presentation (2015)
• When Caregiving Starts Early, Boulder County Aging Services Caregivers Symposium (2015)
• Community Death Resources, presentation Senior Law Day (2015)
• Nourishing the Spirit, Hover Community presentation to assisted living community and memory care residents (2016)
• Only Two Things Are Certain – Taxes and Death. And this isn’t about taxes… presentation to Financial Planning Association of Colorado on working with clients on ACP (February 2016)
• KGNU Community Radio 88.5FM, Quarterly radio show “Death Isn’t All About the Body”
series on dying, death and grief topics. (shows have included Truth about Artificial
Nutrition and Hydration; Vets and End of Life; The Ethics of Physician Aid in Dying; How
We Live with Our Deaths; GLBT Issues at End of Life, Medical Aid in Dying in Colorado,
Emergency Medicine at End of Life.) (see practically-dying.com for audio recordings)
(2012-2017)
• Writer and host of local television show Life and Death: Living Fully, Dying Well, Channel
57 Denver Public Television series exploring issues of life and death (2015-17) (shows
have included Hope At the End of Life; Organ Donation; Pet Loss; Mindfulness; Near
Death Experiences)(see practically-dying.com for episodes)
• Wholeness at the End of Life. Forerunner of a professional training series for elder-care
professionals, facilities and institutions in creating environments supporting elder growth
and conscious community. (2016)
• What about Me?, Boulder County Caregiver Symposium, a humorous presentation on
personal caregiver stresses and gifts (2016)
• The Questions of Life and Death, Naropa University, Divinity Program (2016)
• Befriending Grief, full day workshop (2017)
• In Lieu of Flowers, obituary writing workshop, Longmont Senior Center (2017)
• Esalen Institute, Big Sur, California, weekend workshop on Healing a Grieving Heart (2016)
• Introduction to the Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment (MOST), webinar for Hospice and Palliative Care of the Rockies (2016)
• Grief in the Bones, full day workshop working with grief as a holistic experience Willow Farms Contemplative Center (2017)
• Teaching that Matters: Death Education in the Community, Association for Death Education and Counseling annual conference 2016
• Advance Care Planning for residents, Colorado Assisted Living Association conference (2016)
• Advocating for Change- Community health advocate interview, Masters Program in Palliative Care at University of Colorado School of Medicine (2017)
• Unequal, Denied and Misunderstood: DNR orders, Association for Death Education and Counseling annual conference 2017
• Our Work, Ourselves – Reflecting on our Own Losses as Thanatologists, Association for Death Education and Counseling annual conference 2016
• Denver Channel 9, interview on Colorado recently-passed End-of-Life Options Act (2017)
http://www.9news.com/news/local/next/getting-doctors-to-understand-the-medical-aid-in-dyinglaw/432326854
• Befriending Grief, full day workshop for newly bereaved (2017)
• Colorado End-of-Life Options Act, various community locations (2017)
• The Conversation Project Community community education collaborations with similar community based groups in northern (2014-17)
• My Life: Deciding in Advance. Community Workshop on advance care planning for all ages. Community Health Advocates Coaition, Durango, CO (2017)
• Medical Aid in Dying- Lessons Learned in Oregon and Colorado. Full day conference teaching with Dr. David Grube, Medical Director for Compassion and Choices, and Thaddeus Pope, Director, Health Law Institute, Mitchell Hamline School of Law, Minnesota Coalition for Death Education and Support Fall Conference. Minneapolis, MN (2017)
• CAREful Conversations, AARP, video panel with focus on grief and end of life, will be posted on AARP YouTube in November 2017
• Old School: From Old to Gold. Elder movement to wholeness, focusing on old age, demential, and dying and death Naropa End of Life Conference, December 2017
• Life and Death: Can’t Have One Without the Other. Life and death occur every day; how do we use that truth and power? Colorado University Womens Club, March 2018
• Love Doesn’t Conquer All: Helping New Caregivers Develop Skills For Self Care, Boulder County Caregivers Symposium (2018)
• A Deep Breath And The Right Words: (Navigating Difficult End-Of-Life Conversations, Boulder County Caregivers Symposium 2018)

Teaching and Trainings

• Invited Trainer and Author of Tragedy Response Plan, training for St. Vrain Valley School District Principals, February 28, (1995) and Boulder Valley School District Principals, November 29, (1995)
• Co-Presenter, Sensitivity Training for Reference Librarians, joint Colorado Hospice Organization and Colorado Library project (2006
• Consultant, The House Not Touched by Death, performance piece on death and the medical profession, C.U. Old Main Stage (1997)
• Organizer and Trainer, two-day workshop on grief and spirituality with Jewish Renewal Community (1997)
• Adjunct Faculty, Death and Dying as Opportunities for Healing, Gerontology Program, The Naropa University, Boulder, CO (1995-2006)
• Guest Faculty, Abnormal Psychology class, Psychology of Death and Grief, Naropa Institute, Boulder, CO, (1996-99)
• Grief and Spirituality, volunteer training for Hospice of Boulder County (1993-2006)
• Critical Incident Debriefing, Boulder County Crisis Intervention Team (2006)
• Co-founder/Co-facilitator, Recovering Balance After Death, weekend family bereavement camp (1997-2001)
• Consultant, Brain Injury Support Group, re-group structure, facilitator training, member death (2003)
• Trainer, Grief in the Workplace, corporate clients (2004-2006)
• Grief and Trauma Response, Broomfield Police Victim Services/Boulder County Sheriff Victim Advocates (2005-2017)
• Facilitating Senior Grief Groups, Longmont Senior Services Peer Counselors (2007)
• Body Language for Supporting People in Loss, Atonement Lutheran Church (2007)
• Helping Patients in Fear and Loss, Boulder Community Hospital chaplains (2007)
• Share the Care Community Caregiving, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America State Conference (2008)
• Debriefing Your Crisis Response Team, St. Vrain Valley School District (2007-2008)
• Interviewing Bereaved People, University of Colorado School of Journalism (2008)
• Continuity of Care at the End of Life, Folks in Aging (2008)
• Staying in Charge of Your Life When It Matters Most: Considering End of Life Choices Now, half-day workshop on advance directives (2009)
• Honoring Our Families, Respecting Our Parents: Advance Care Planning workshop Latino community (2009)
• From Stages to Service, a history of grief theory and application to spiritual care in medical facilities, various hospital chaplaincy programs (2009)
• Your Church as Caring Community – various faith communities (2010)
• Teambuilding for Professional Caregivers, various residential communities (2010)
• Harvesting Wisdom, various faith communities (2010)
• Working with Grief in The Body – Healing Spirits Massage School students (2010-15)
• Getting Through the Holidays: grief and depression to mental health therapists (2011)
• Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment, presentations to public, medical professionals, residential facilities administrators, hospitals, EMS (2011-2016)
• Closer to the Fire, full-day workshop on exploring death (2011)
• Living with Loss: Supporting Grieving People, workshop for psychotherapists and paraprofessionals (2011)
• Working with Trauma Responses, Longmont United Hospital Trauma Response Team (2011)
• The Dark Night of the Soul, Colorado Palliative Care & Hospice Organization Spring Conference (2012)
• Grief Counseling, Transpersonal Counseling Program, Naropa University (2013)
• Advance Care Planning workshops for Latino community at large, Boulder County

End of Life Options and Openings, training for Latino Promotores Project of the Colorado
Latino Age Wave, an initiative of the Latino Community Foundation of Colorado (2014)
• Grief in the Workplace, workshop on supporting staff and clientele through loss and death, Kingsbury CPAs (2014)
• Critical Conversations: Updates on the Revision of the Medical Order for Scope of Treatment, Compassion and Choices, (2015)
• Gifts of Grief, weekend workshop exploring grief experiences with different modalities (i.e., professional, shamanic, spiritual) (2015)
• Grief as Path, full-day workshop exploring grief as a natural part of life (2016)
• Grief in Our Bones, full-day grief support workshop (2016)
• Advance Care Planning: Advance Directives and More, two-part workshop designed to equip participants to understand the comprehensive nature of end-of-life planning and develop skills to maintain up-to-date, relevant plans. (2016)
• Grief and Loss Professional Development Training, ten monthly sessions offering counselors and anyone providing clinical, spiritual or emotional support for grieving populations a comprehensive understanding of grief practice, research and theory. (2016-2018)
• End-of-Life and Grief Support for Professionals, creation of curriculum and facilitation of modules on death and grief for innovative advanced skill development for professional caregivers, Home Care of the Rockies national Caregiving 100 project (2016-2018)
• Advance Care Planning training for Care Managers in residential facilities, Kavod Senior Life (2016-2017)
• Colorado End-of-Life Options Act introduction, five one-day trainings for physicians, hospice and hospital staff and leadership, residential facility leadership, emergency teams, clergy, emergency response providers, attorneys, other professional interested persons (2017)
• Preparando Me Regalo De Paz, program design of curriculum and team facilitation of advance care workshops for Boulder County Latino community (2014-2018)
• El Pasado, Presente y Futuro, an advance care planning initiative of Colorado
• Gerontological Society and Latino Community Foundation of Colorado, program creation of curriculum and team facilitation of advance care planning strategies for key community influencers in the Latino community in Denver.
• Cause for Pause: Contemplative Practices for Working with Grief, trainer for professional caregivers, Willow Farm Contemplative Center (2017-18)
• End of Life Care Planning for Medical Professionals in Boulder Community Health clinics and various health care facilities in Boulder and Denver Counties
• Education Consultant for The Conversation Project in Boulder Boulder County (2017- 2017)
• Life and Death – Can’t Have One Without the Other, presentation to University of Colorado at Boulder Women’s Club (2018)
• Alchemy of Aging Project Conference (Principal in Alchemy of Aging Project), two day conference exploring the paths of aging, states of being and dying as both opportunity and challenge. (2018)
• Talkbacks at Boedecker Theater following films involving death and/or grief, Dairy Center for the Arts, Boulder CO (2016-2018)
• Grief training for Caregiving

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