Alexis Drutchas, MD
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Experts & Educators
Hospice and grief experts, researchers, and professionals.
We are a hub for the country’s most distinguished hospice and grief experts, researchers, and professionals. HFA experts help to inform and educate on a wide range of timely and relevant topics essential to best practice.
Nationally and internationally acclaimed
Our HFA educators are well known and widely recognized as experts in their fields.
Leaders in evidence-based research
They’re researchers with decades of knowledge backed by evidenced-based studies.
Highly respected, skilled, and experienced
They’re professionals who have honed their skills with years of patient and family care.
HFA has been privileged to include many notable experts in its professional education offerings over the past 30 years, including the late Earl. A Grollman; Nancy Hogan, RN, PhD; Karla Holloway, PhD; the late William M. Lamers, MD; the late Richard E. Payne, MD.
Below is a complete listing of our presenters and authors from 2020 onward. We are grateful for their willingness to share their expertise to advance hospice and bereavement care through HFA.
Don't miss our next program
End-of-Life Doulas and Hospice Care
October 13, 2026
at Noon – 1:30pm ET
Whether it’s a popular HBO Max drama or an interview in People magazine with a famous actress, stories of end-of-life doulas are suddenly everywhere. But how exactly does this new and evolving service complement the work of hospice teams? Join a discussion with hospice professionals and end-of-life doulas to learn how doulas work in tandem with hospice IDT members to another layer of support to patients and families at the end of life.
Registration Options
- Individual: Includes live and on-demand access for one learner.
- Organization/Company: Designed for staff training. Includes live and on-demand access for up to 25 employees at one location.
- Community License: Ideal for multi-site organizations and organizations serving their broader community. Includes live and on-demand access for employees and community members across up to three locations.
Please Note: Individual memberships and registrations are not eligible for organization or community use.
Continuing education included with registration.
Kelstan Ellis, DO, MS-CR, MBE
Kelstan Ellis is a palliative care physician and bioethicist at Children’s Mercy Kansas City (CMKC) and the medical director of pediatric palliative care at the University of Kansas Health System (TUKHS). She completed her pediatrics residency and palliative care fellowship at the University of Kansas. Her clinical interests include the intersection of ethics and palliative…
Jane Euler, MS
Jane Euler is a a Serious Illness Companion and Chief Doula at Present for You, LLC. She supports individuals facing life-limiting disease as well as the families and friends who journey beside them. With quiet compassion, Jane invites honest conversations about wishes, needs, and care goals. She sits with people coming to terms with impending…
William Feigelman, PhD
William Feigelman is an emeritus professor of sociology at Nassau Community College, where he taught for 50 years. Since his son’s suicide in 2002, Feigelman has focused his professional writings on suicide and suicide bereavement, with his writings appearing in most all leading bereavement journals. He is a co-author of Devastating Losses: How Parents Cope…
Rabbi Gary S. Fink, DMin
Gary Fink was Senior Vice President of Counseling and Family Support at Montgomery Hospice in Rockville, MD, where he supported the counseling departments, directed the Spiritual Counseling staff, and led interfaith community outreach efforts. He served as a congregational rabbi for more than 25 years, retiring from the pulpit to establish a pastoral counseling practice…
Natasha Fowlks, RN
Natasha Fowlks is the Executive Director of Hospice Atlanta, part of the Visiting Nurse Health System, where she leads hospice and palliative care services with compassion, clinical expertise, and a strong commitment to end-of-life advocacy. With more than a decade of experience in hospice care, she is a Certified Hospice & Palliative Nurse (CHPN) and…
Pamela Gabbay, EdD, FT
Pamela Gabbay is a nationally recognized author, trainer, and consultant who has served the bereavement field in many capacities during her career. Gabbay is part of the training corps of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and travels throughout the country conducting trainings on their behalf. She is on the Advisory Board for the…
Louis A. Gamino, PhD, ABPP, FT
Louis Gamino is Professor (Affiliated) of Psychiatry & Behavioral Science at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine and Baylor Scott & White Health in Temple, Texas. Dr. Gamino is a Diplomate in Clinical Psychology through the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP) and a Fellow in Thanatology (FT) through the Association for Death…
Maria Georgopoulos, LMHC, FT
Maria Georgopoulos is a licensed mental health counselor and Fellow in Thanatology, whose work focuses on grief, loss, and trauma. She is founder of Roula’s Kids: A Space for Grieving Families, Inc., which provides free grief groups in New York for children and their families that have experienced the death of someone significant in their…
Carlos Graveran
Carlos Graveran has more than 30 years of experience in healthcare and is a passionate hospice advocate. Since 2016, he has served as Executive Director of Frederick Health Hospice, a nonprofit hospice agency in Frederick, MD. Previously, he served as vice president of operations for VITAS Healthcare. Graveran co-chairs the Public Policy Committee for the…
Matthew Vern Grindstaff
Vern Grindstaff, an avid community philanthropist, came to work in the hospice arena at Compassionate Care WNC (CCWNCC) around ten years ago. After serving in several capacities at CCWNC, he proudly accepted the invitation to take the reins and lead as CEO in 2022.
Earl Grollman, DHL, DD
Earl Grollman (1925-2021) was a rabbi, a pioneer in the study of death and dying, and the author of several books on crisis intervention.
Trying to understand what hospice care is and how it can help? HFA has the answers.
Whether you’re a patient, family member, or a friend trying to determine whether hospice is the right choice, HFA is here. We provide guidance before, during, and after the important decisions are made.
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