Becoming a Doula

What is a doula?

A labor support person (often called a doula):

Recognizes birth as a key life experience and understands the physiology of birth and the emotional needs of a woman in labor;
Assists a pregnant woman in preparing for and carrying out her plans for birth;
Stays by the side of the woman throughout labor - no change of shift;
Provides emotional support, practical comfort measures, an objective viewpoint, and information to aid decision-making;
Acts as a liaison between the laboring woman, her partner and clinical care providers;
Perceives her role as nurturing and protecting the woman's memory of the birth;
Does not replace the woman's partner or clinical care providers.

Recent studies indicate better outcomes for babies and their mothers: shorter, more comfortable labors; fewer complications; and greater maternal satisfaction when a labor support person is present. A doula's nurturing patience, expertise, and commitment to childbearing women and their partners can help women have safe and satisfying birth experiences. Doulas fill a void that has existed for generations in our maternity care system.

The Doula Workshop

The workshop is designed to help participants become expert labor support providers. It utilizes tools and supplementary literature, videos, and role play to build theoretical knowledge and practical skill. During the workshop the students will:

Define the scope of practice of the Doula
List the benefits of the Doula on obstetrical outcomes as demonstrated in 6 scientific studies
Describe the varying roles of the doula
List reasons for prenatal meetings between Doula and client
Describe records to keep and reasons to keep them
Detail the emotions of labor and the support needs of the woman
Demonstrate competence in labor support in a role play situation
Describe the emotional needs of a woman in a difficult or complicated labor
Demonstrate competence in massage, acupressure, patterned breathing, and maternal positioning
Present the Doula's role during a cesarean
Describe the Doula's role with the newborn and in the immediate postpartum
Describe the purpose of the postpartum follow-up meeting
List ideas for managing practical matters, such as getting experience, getting clients and managing daily life on call
Detail the ways Doulas may gain credentials

This workshop assumes a basic knowledge of pregnancy & childbirth either as a childbirth educator, nurse with labor and delivery experience, or through midwifery. If you do not have this background, you should audit a childbirth series before you attend this workshop.

Faculty

Robin Elise Weiss, ICCE, CD(DONA), has been doing labor support for over eight years. She is a childbirth educator with the International Childbirth Education Association and the American Academy of Husband Coached Childbirth. Many know her childbirth resource site on the internet at Childbirth.org and at TMC Pregnancy/Childbirth. She is presently serving on the Publication and Public Relations Committees of Doulas of North America.

Robin's experience in doula work encompasses both medicated and non-medicated labor and births, cesarean sections, vaginal births after cesarean and unexpected outcomes, both in home and hospital settings.

This program has been approved as one step (the workshop requirement) toward
certification by Doulas of North America (DONA).

For more information on how to set up a training in your area or to view the
current schedule visit Stork Smart.