Thresholds Conference
Holding Space in Hard Moments: Supporting Loss, Caregiver Fatigue, and End-of-Life Conversations
Keynote Speakers: Dr. Lucy Hone and Dr. Aditi Nerurkar
Save the Date
Tuesday, May 5, 2026
In-Person & Virtual
An annual conference that unites families, friends, healthcare professionals, and caregivers in meaningful conversations about end-of-life care. This year’s conference will be designed to educate the community about grief, caregiver burnout, and difficult conversations regarding end of life.
Keynote Speakers
Dr. Lucy Hone is a world-leading authority on resilience, a best-selling author, and a respected voice in global conversations about what helps humans cope with loss, change, and uncertainty. Trained in resilience psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and holding a PhD in wellbeing science, she is an Adjunct Fellow at the Universities of Canterbury and Pittsburgh. Her TED talk, Three Secrets of Resilient People, has been viewed over 9 million times and translated into 23 languages. She has collaborated with the UN and the BBC and delivered keynotes and workshops to Fortune 100 companies, global tech giants, health services, schools, government agencies, and first responders—all seeking practical ways to strengthen resilience in the face of challenge.
Dr. Lucy Hone
Lucy’s perspective is both research-informed and deeply personal. After the sudden death of her 12-year-old daughter, she turned to the science she knew inside out to navigate unimaginable grief. That journey became the foundation for her bestselling book "Resilient Grieving," and a catalyst for reshaping how individuals and organizations understand what it really means to cope with unwanted change. Her mission is to make resilience science practical, accessible, and honest—never sugar-coated or simplistic. A regular contributor to Psychology Today, her work has also been featured in The Guardian, The Washington Post, and the BBC. Whether working with senior leaders, frontline professionals, or communities under pressure, she is known for her clarity, compassion, and ability to translate evidence into everyday strategies—kindling realistic optimism and adaptive mindsets that support people to keep going, even when life is hard.
Dr. Aditi Nerurkar, MD, MPH is a Harvard physician with expertise in the science of stress, resilience, and burnout. A vibrant and engaging speaker, Dr. Nerurkar offers insights on optimizing mental health, well-being, and productivity. She leaves audiences energized and empowered to take control of their lives with practical, science-backed, and approachable recommendations that can be applied both immediately and in the long-term.
Her bestselling book, “The Five Resets: Rewire Your Brain and Body for Less Stress and More Resilience,” is an accessible health-meets-self-help guide, available in 35 countries and 15 languages, offering a reimagined approach to overcoming stress and improving mental health. It was named a “must-read” by Adam Grant and Malcolm Gladwell’s Next Big Idea Club. It has also been featured in the New York Times, NPR, Times of London and endorsed by Harrison Ford, Katie Couric, Arianna Huffington and Eve Rodsky. Her next book, on AI and mental health, will be out in 2026.
Dr. Aditi Nerurkar
Dr. Nerurkar is on faculty at Harvard Medical School in the Division of Global Health & Social Medicine and serves as the Co-Director of the Harvard Clinical Clerkship in Community Engagement. Previously, she worked in global public health at a World Health Organization collaboration center in Switzerland, as well as a Medical Director at Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Her work has been featured in the New York Times, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, Time Magazine and CNN. Her published research can be found in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). She is also an on-air medical commentator for various media outlets including MSNBC and NBC News. She is an internationally-recognized Fortune 50 speaker who has delivered unforgettable keynotes at the Forbes 30 Under 30 Summit, the Harvard Business School Women’s Conference, IBM, Visa, Dell Technologies, and many more. Her TED Talk was highlighted on TED homepage. Dr. Nerurkar has a weekly Substack newsletter titled Mental Health-ish.
She was recently named “100 Women to Know in America” for her impactful work in stress and mental health.
Schedule
8:00am: Registration Opens
9:00am: Andrea LeBlanc - Welcome Remarks
9:05am: Dr. Lucy Hone - Keynote and Q&A
10:15am: Stretch and Bathroom Break
10:25am: Breakout Rooms and Q&A
Grief (more information coming soon!)
Home Caregiving (more information coming soon!)
Alzheimer's and Memory Care (more information coming soon!)
11:45am: Lunch Break and Book Sale
12:45pm: Dr. Aditi Nerurkar - Keynote and Q&A
1:55pm: Closing Remarks
Certification of Attendance
Attendees who participate in the full conference will earn 3.5 contact hours. Certificates of Attendance will be available to pick up at the event and to download. Social Worker CEUs will be available for qualifying attendees. See below for more information.
Joint Accreditation Statement
In support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by Amedco LLC and Hospice of Southern Maine (HSM). Amedco LLC is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
Amedco Joint Accreditation #4008163.
Professions in scope for this activity are listed below.
Nurses
Amedco LLC designates this activity for a maximum of 3.50 ANCC contact hours.
Social Workers
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, Amedco is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. Amedco maintains responsibility for this course. ASWB Learner Level: Intermediate. Social Workers completing this course receive 3.50 GENERAL continuing education credits.
The following state boards accept courses offering ASWB ACE credit for Social Workers: AK, AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NM, NV, OH, OK*, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VT, VA, WA, WI, WV*, WY
OK: Accepts ASWB ACE for live, in-person activities but not for ethics and/or online courses.
WV: Accepts ASWB ACE unless activity is held live in West Virginia.
The following state boards accept courses offering ASWB ACE credit for Counselors: AK, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, MA, MD, ME, MO, ND, NE, NM, NH, NV, OK*, OR, PA, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI, WY
MI: No CE requirement for licensed counselors.
The following state boards accept courses offering ASWB ACE credit for MFTs: AK, AR, AZ, CA, CO, FL, IA, ID, IN, KS, MD, ME, MO, NC, NE, NH, NM, NV, OK*, OR, PA, RI, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI, WY
AL MFTs: Credits authorized by NBCC or any other state licensing agency will be accepted.
MA MFTs: Participants can self-submit courses not approved by the MAMFT board for review.
MI: No CE requirement for licensed MFTs.
The following state boards accept ASWB ACE credit for Addictions Professionals: AK, CA, CO, CT, GA, IA, IN, KS, LA, MO, MT, ND, NM, NV, OK, OR, SC, WA, WI, WV, WY
Frequently Asked Questions
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Yes, attendees who participate in the full conference will earn 3.5 contact hours. Certificates of Attendance will be available to pick up at the event and to download after the conference. Nursing and Social Work CEUs will be available for qualifying attendees. Please make sure to select the CEU option when registering. To learn more, click here.
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Please park in the Abromson Center parking garage. USM has updated their parking policy. If you're experiencing difficulty there will be an HSM volunteer in the garage as well as a parking attendant to assist. Scan the QR code and use this promo code THRESHOLD26 to ensure you're not charged.
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We're always looking for volunteers to help out with this event! Click here for information on volunteering.
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Service animals are allowed within the public USM buildings. The animal must be a fully trained service dog in accordance with State and Federal definitions. The dog will need to have standard dog licensing and registration as required by State law for all dogs aged 6 months and older. The University does not allow emotional support animals inside the buildings other than approved ESAs within the residence halls. The handler is responsible for maintaining control of the service animal at all times.
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No, refunds are not available for tickets to this year’s Thresholds Conference. If you signed up for in-person you may switch to virtual. If you cannot attend in-person or virtually on May 5th, your ticket entitles you to a recording of the full conference, available for 3 months after the event. A link to the recording will be emailed to all registered attendees in the week following the conference.
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Please call (207) 289-3643 or email give@hospiceofsouthernmaine.org if you have any additional questions.
Thank You to Our 2026 Sponsors
The Thresholds Conference would not be possible without the generous support of these local businesses and organizations. If you would like to join them in sponsoring our Thresholds 2025, please click our sponsorship links or call 207-289-3628.
