Daniel DeLoma
Connecticut
Daniel DeLoma, M.Th., MSPC, is a medical theologian, hospice and palliative care chaplain, author, and educator whose work focuses on accompaniment during the final days and hours of life.
For more than a decade, he has walked alongside individuals and families facing serious illness, dying, and grief. Drawing upon hospice practice, contemplative spirituality, theology, and global palliative care, his teaching explores what dying may look like and how caregivers can respond with understanding, compassion, and presence. His work emphasizes communication when words become limited, family concerns, and the practical role of those keeping vigil.
Daniel describes accompaniment through the ancient image of the psychopomp: one who accompanies another person toward the threshold without trying to control the crossing. This philosophy takes practical form through listening, silence, ritual, breath, voice, and touch.
He serves in spiritual care, bereavement, volunteer services, and hospice leadership with Waveny LifeCare Network and Visiting Nurse & Hospice of Fairfield County. A certified Reiki Master and end-of-life doula, he completed advanced fellowship training in palliative care through St. Christopher’s Hospice in London and the Institute of Palliative Medicine in India.
Daniel developed Meditative Heartbeat Therapy and is the author of Meditative Heartbeat Therapy: A Contemplative Guide to Presence, Rhythm, and Care at End of Life (Apocryphile Press). Whether at the bedside, in the classroom, or through his writing, he helps people understand how to remain present when there may be nothing left to fix.