The Shared Crossing Project Team 

William teaches clinical methods to guide end-of-life practitioners in assisting their clients in meaningful integration of their end-of-life experiences.

As the Director of the Shared Crossing Research Initiative (SCRI), William and his research team collect and study extraordinary end-of-life experiences (shared crossings).  He is recognized by many as the world’s leading authority on the shared death experience (SDE) having developed research-based typologies that classify the full range of SDEs. He also created the Spectrum of End-of-Life Experiences, a user-friendly guide to assist the dying, caregivers and health care professionals in navigating and understanding phenomena that can manifest at end of life.  

William conducts workshops and presents internationally. He recently presented at the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine Annual Conference. His innovative work has been featured on CNN Online among other media outlets. William’s book entitled At Heaven’s Door:  What Shared Journeys to the Afterlife Teach About Dying Well and Living Better was published worldwide by Simon & Schuster in January 2022.

William continues his practice as a licensed psychotherapist at the Family Therapy Institute in Santa Barbara, specializing in end-of-life counseling as a means toward psycho-spiritual evolution. William has served as a Zen Hospice volunteer and his work is informed by his two near-death experiences and a variety of shared death experiences. 

Read William’s story here

Additionally, she is a past appointee to the Ethics Committee for Huntsville Hospital.

In 2017, Dr. Williams was principal investigator for a national multi-center study, TRIAD VIII, which established that patient video testimonials are superior to other forms of critical/end-of-life care documents presently standard in healthcare. In 2018, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law two bills, co-drafted by Dr Williams, addressing medical directives for terminally ill minors: The Alex Hoover Act and the Palliative Care and End of Life Individual Health Plan Act.
 
Dr. Monica Williams is a passionate author and keynote speaker whose focus is empowering patients and families in critical and end-of-life decision-making. Her book, "It's OK to Die" and companion website are tools devoted to transforming the end of life into a time of peace, closure and healing. Dr. Monica has lectured from Princeton to LA and her work has appeared in the New York Times, Health Around the Web Column, and the Washington Post. She has appeared on the Emmy Award winning TV show The Doctors and her work has been adopted by the UK NHS campaign "Be Ready for It" and by UCLA's Center for Integrative Oncology.