Did you know that the doula profession is unregulated and that licensing and certification are not required? This means that folks come to this work from all walks of life and with a wide range of lived experience and training. Generally speaking, people who become doulas are heart-centered folks who are motivated to support growing families. There are certainly pros and cons to face that doula work isn’t regulated. Pros include the following: 

• This work may be more accessible to people who want to do care work and potentially already have years of experience and knowledge.
• There is a tradition of doula work being community-based, peer-to-peer support, which didn’t require formal training or certification
• This is relational work, and doulas and families can focus on this element when making choices about working together. 

Cons include the following: 

• Families have to educate themselves on what to look for in a doula.
• Families need to do a bit more vetting to ensure a good fit and/or credibility.
• It can be overwhelming and confusing to understand different trainings, since there isn’t universal regulation.

As a highly-experienced doula who teaches other doulas (did you know ABG has a postpartum doula training program?!), we’d like to share some of the questions and considerations you might like to engage with as you seek to hire a postpartum doula for your family. 

Questions and Considerations for Potential Doulas

Most doulas and agencies offer complimentary consultations to meet your doula, express your needs/desires, and learn about their services. These are some of the questions and considerations we encourage parents to explore during a consultation (or even while looking at a doula’s website):

1. What is the scope of your practice and what can I expect our work together to look like?
2. How long have you been a doula? How many families have you partnered with?
3. Did you attend a full training? Tell me more about it! (Certification is optional, but the education of a structured training is important.)
4. What continuing education or ongoing training have you taken? What courses have you found most helpful?
5. Are you CPR certified? And is your certification current?
6. What knowledge, training, and experience do you have with breastfeeding?
7. (If the doula is explicitly offering lactation support) What is your training and certification? (Many doulas have training in lactation support; some extensive; but only the International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) is regulated. IBCLCs can be verified here.)
8. Will you be on-call for births while working with our family? If yes, what happens if you need to attend a birth?
9. Who would you call on for backup as needed? And under what circumstances? Will I get to meet this person preemptively?
10. (If vaccination is a priority for your family) What is your vaccination status? What is your COVID- risk-tolerance, policies, and protocols?
11. Do you sleep while the baby is sleeping?
12. Is there anything in your record/past that I should be aware of?
13. Do you hold doula liability insurance?
14. Do you abide by AAP safety guidelines?

If you are communicating with an agency, we suggest asking all of the above questions as well as the following:

1. Do you simply match our family with a doula or do you continue to stay involved with the care? Will the same doula stay with me the entire service time?
2. Are all of the potential matches trained doulas or are you also placing nannies, newborn care specialists, or doulas in training? (Find our blog about different types of newborn care professionals here and specify that you want to know what type of professional you are matched with and what their credentials are.) 

We also suggest that you ask for 2-3 references and connect with those people if the answers shared resonate with you. If the doula is newer, this can be a bit trickier, but they should have colleagues or friends that you can talk to. Many doulas have testimonials on their websites as well. 

Beyond the Logistics

The logistical related questions above can help you screen folks relatively quickly. There may be some clear “no’s” based on the doula’s answers to the above. If you meet a doula (or a few) whose answers to these questions align with your family’s needs and desires, you will also want to check in with your gut and your heart. Consider how you felt in conversation with them. Did you feel at ease? Did the connection flow? This blog covers a behind the scenes look at the work of a postpartum doula. Can you imagine this person being in your space and supporting you through the sleepy, intimate hours of the night, for example? We invite you to trust the information your body gives you. Some people will be a yes and others will be a no. Because this is relational work, this information is key. Don’t try to make a connection work if it’s really not feeling right. 

ABG is Here for You

Your growing family matters deeply to us at Austin Baby Guru. We are here to offer support, ideas, and referrals as you find the best support team for your family. We invite you to reach out if you are interested in learning more about our services.

*Photo credit: Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash