A Birth Doula
- Recognizes birth as a key experience the mother will remember all her life
- Understands the physiology of birth and the emotional needs of a woman in labor
- Assists the woman in preparing for and carrying out her plans for birth
- Stays with the woman throughout the labor
- Provides emotional support, physical comfort measures and an objective viewpoint, as well as helping the woman get the information she needs to make informed decision
- Facilitates communication between the laboring woman, her partner and her clinical care providers
- Perceives her role as nurturing and protecting the woman's memory of the birth experience
- Allows the woman's partner to participate at his/her comfort level
Information from DONA International
What A Doula Does:
A doula is a person who is trained to support a family during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.A doula may provide:
- evidence based information
- emotional support
- physical comfort during labor
- enhance communication between the family and birth team
Benefits of Having a Doula at Your Birth:
When continuous labor support was provided by a doula, women experienced a:- 31% decrease in the use of Pitocin*
- 28% decrease in the risk of C-section*
- 12% increase in the likelihood of a spontaneous vaginal birth*
- 9% decrease in the use of any medications for pain relief
- 14% decrease in the risk of newborns being admitted to a special care nursery
- 34% decrease in the risk of being dissatisfied with the birth experience*
For four of these outcomes,* results with a doula were better than all the other types of continuous support that were studied. Information provided by Evidence Based Birth
What A Doula Does NOT Do:
- take blood pressure or temperature
- monitor fetal heart tones
- do vaginal examinations
- provide clinical prenatal or postpartum care
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