How many people use doulas

Another South African doula wrote:. We have taken on another midwife and are looking for another doula.

We are busier than ever before. I have not been to a government hospital for 4 weeks and no longer can support families at private hospitals. According to Davis-Floyd et al.

One of our a US doula respondents stressed the latter reason as she shared her experience with the rise in home births:. Women who had never considered a home birth before, or had considered it but never made the leap, switched to home at the last minute. I was a part of 4 of these births in the past two months, and every one of them gave the same reason for switching—not that they were afraid of COVID exposure, but that they didn't want to be refused doula support in the hospital.

I think that speaks to the importance of doulas at births, and how badly women want them there. Faced with mounting uncertainties both with the virus and changing hospital policies, pregnant people turned to doulas for help navigating the possibilities of home birth and midwifery models of care.

Research with doulas shows the power of the pandemic to intensify and homogenize biomedical, technocratic models of birth Davis-Floyd Working within these parameters in person, doulas increase emotional and social support for laboring people as well as alleviate some of the stress of caring for them for hospital management.

This sentiment was echoed by a South African doula:. Our responsible presence at births would make it so much easier, not only for the parents, but also the entire medical team during this time of fear and uncertainty. This uncertainty is reflected in our most recent responses from international doulas. While some international respondents reported affirmatively that doulas were indeed readmitted as birth workers in hospitals, they were in the minority, as many others confirmed the continued exclusion of doulas.

The answers to our questions were not bound by national borders, as we gathered differing responses from doulas within the same national territory and similar responses from around the globe. These responses only further reinforce our understanding that this virus knows no political borders—national, regional or local. Instead, what we can affirm from our international responses is that doulas around the world are continuing to support laboring people, sometimes in person and other times virtually, and that their commitment to a holistic form of care is rooted in their belief that the liminal moments of birth are both transformational and lasting.

I feel like they are the ones stepping up right now and trying to fill all the voids left in this strange time. Now more than ever we need to recognize and support the essential work that doulas do, as well as invest in strategies that increase access to doula care for women worldwide in sustainable ways. The datasets presented in this article are not readily available because Authors have made anonymous all qualitative data from respondents.

Requests to access the datasets should be directed to jsearcy butler. Both authors conducted and coded the qualitative survey on which the article is based. AC put ethnographic data into document and wrote a rough draft. JJS then added to the rough draft. After a discussion, JJS then wrote and revised and edited the manuscript.

AC read over it and made small changes. The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Bohren, M. Perceptions and experiences of labour companionship: a qualitative evidence synthesis. Cochrane Database Syst. Davenport, M. Frontiers in global women's health. Davis-Floyd, R. Birth as an American rite of passage. Everson, C. Editor N. Google Scholar. Gilliland, A. Beyond holding hands: the modern role of the professional doula. Neonatal Nurs. Gruber, K. Impact of douglas on healthy birth outcomes.

Horstman, H. Communicatively making sense of doulas within the U. Master birth narrative: doulas as liminal characters. Health Commun. Hunter, C. Intimate space within institutionalized birth: women's experiences birthing with douglas. Kayne, M. Douglas: an alternative yet complementary addition to care during childbirth. National Academies of Sciences Engineering and medicine Washington, DC. National Academies Press doi Neel, K. Hospital-based maternity care practitioners' perceptions of douglas.

Birth 46 2 , — Norman, B. For more information or to find doula support near you, visit thedouladirectory. In need of some at-home inspiration? Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for skincare and self-care, the latest cultural hits to read and download, and the little luxuries that make staying in so much more satisfying. Type keyword s to search. Karan Kapoor Getty Images. This content is imported from Instagram.

You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. View this post on Instagram. Our doula was a great sounding board and voice of reason. There is a huge opportunity to increase the number of doulas in California to serve more families. I expect that the demand for doulas will increase year after year and doulas have an opportunity to make a significant contribution to maternal-infant outcomes as they increase the number of families served.

The Listening to Mothers in California survey offered a fascinating peek into the preferences, experiences, and outcomes of birthing families in that state, similar to the national surveys have done in the past.

The LtM in CA website is rich in resources and materials, and I encourage you to poke around to see first hand the outcomes of these families. I look forward to an updated national survey and further exploration of additional states in the future.

Have you had a chance to take a look at the results? What are your thoughts on some of the findings? Declercq, E. Research has shown that the most positive birth experiences for fathers were ones where they had continuous support by a doula or a midwife. In other studies, fathers have said that when they had labor support from a midwife or doula, things were explained to them, their questions were answered, their labor support efforts were guided and effective, and they could take breaks from the emotional intensity of the labor without abandoning their laboring partner Johansson, Access to continuous labor support from a doula is especially vital for birthing people of color.

Black women experience higher rates of poor birth outcomes, including higher rates of Cesarean, preterm birth, low birth weight, and infant death Thomas et al. Then what does explain the health inequity? In public health, racism influences social determinants of health , which include housing, education, and employment. Doula care offers many benefits including better birth outcomes, but people of color often face barriers in accessing doula support.

To address this critical need, we need more programs like the By My Side program through Healthy Start Brooklyn in New York that offers free doula services to low-income people in Black and Latino neighborhoods Thomas et al. The idea for the By My Side program came about when Gabriela Ammann, a local doula and Lamaze instructor, noticed that many of the women attending her free childbirth-education series did not have reliable support for their labor and birth.

To address this need, she matched birthing people with volunteer doula care. In , the process of pairing these women with free doula support was formalized when Healthy Start Brooklyn hired certified doulas to provide support during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. The program focused on non-Latina Black women, since this was the group with the highest infant-mortality rate in the program area.

The doula and educator with the idea for this initiative is now the director of the By My Side program. Between and , nearly infants were born to women enrolled in the program. Compared to similar births in the area, program participants had significantly lower rates of preterm birth and low birth weight. In addition, participant feedback showed that doula support was highly valued:.

Those who could most benefit from doula care frequently have the least access to it. To address the existing unjust health disparities, it is imperative that continuous labor support be accessible to everyone and provided by a culturally diverse doula workforce.

Childbirth Connection has a great list of interview questions for a doula. The website DoulaMatch. Of all the ways birth outcomes could be improved, continuous labor support seems like one of the most important and basic needs for birthing people.

Providing labor support to birthing people is both risk-free and highly effective. Evidence shows that continuous support can decrease the risk of Cesarean, the use of medications for pain relief, and the risk of a low five minute Apgar score. Labor support also increases satisfaction and the chance of a spontaneous vaginal birth.

Continuous support may also shorten labor and decrease the use of Pitocin. Although continuous support can also be offered by birth partners, midwives, nurses, or even some physicians, research has shown that with some outcomes, doulas have a stronger effect than other types of support persons.

As such, doulas should be viewed by both parents and providers as a valuable, evidence-based member of the birth care team. Psychological Bulletin, 5 , Kozhimannil, K. Strauss, N. The Journal of perinatal education , 25 3 , — Thomas, M. Maternal and child health journal, 21 Suppl 1 , 59— We would also like to thank Cristen Pascucci for her medical editing assistance.

Join others who also want to help bring evidence-based care to their local community. Don't miss an episode! Subscribe to our podcast: iTunes Stitcher On today's podcast, we're going to talk with Ihotu Ali, MPH, who is writing about research on the effects of racism on pregnancy and birth outcomes. Rebecca Dekker.

PhD, RN. Get our free, one-page handout on Doulas today to use in your informed decision making! What is a doula? How many people use doulas? What do doulas do? Aspects of physical support provided by a doula may include: Soothing with touch through the use of massage or counter pressure Helping to create a calm environment, like dimming lights and arranging curtains Assisting with water therapy shower, tub Applying warmth or cold Assisting the birthing person in walking to and from the bathroom Giving ice chips, food, and drinks Emotional support helps the birthing person feel cared for and feel a sense of pride and empowerment after birth.

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