Jill Kottmeier, MS, BSN, RN, FT, CCISM
RN and Thanatologist
Jill Kottmeier is a registered nurse and Fellow in Thanatology who has dedicated more than two decades to supporting grieving families and healthcare staff. She currently serves as Director of Wellbeing and Bereavement Services at Endeavor Health Northwest Community Hospital in Illinois, where she leads initiatives to integrate compassionate bereavement care and crisis response throughout the system.
Specializing in perinatal palliative and bereavement care, Jill has walked alongside countless families during the heartbreaking experience of saying goodbye to their babies too soon. Her work begins at the moment of devastating news and continues well beyond the hospital stay, ensuring that parents feel supported through their grief journey.
Recognizing that loss and trauma profoundly affect not only families but also healthcare professionals, Jill co-founded the first hospital crisis response team at Northwest Community Hospital, which now serves the broader Endeavor Health system. Through this work, she has formalized programmes that prioritize staff wellbeing, address grief in the workplace, destigmatise mental health, and equip leaders with tools for crisis intervention.
Jill’s dual mission is clear: to create safe spaces for grieving families and to foster healthier, more resilient work environments for the professionals who care for them. Her commitment is also deeply personal, as she is a carer for her child with a chronic illness—an experience that continually informs her empathy, advocacy, and dedication to holistic care.