Doulas: Collaborative Care & Advocacy #053

Your BIRTH Partners

Where do doulas fit into birthcare and the collaborative care team model that we envision as the standard in the future? Doulas are the space holders. If there is any role in the birthteam that is built around holding space, this is it!

So what can we learn about the unique qualifications doulas have to hold space and how that can extend and create a bridge for all members of the birth team? We have invited Traci Weafer, doula and educator with more than 2 decades of experience supporting birth in a variety of settings and roles, on to unpack holding space as a doula.
In this episode we want to explore the question: is holding space antithetical to taking action as an advocate? Spoiler alert, no! So how does the role of a doula, a non-clinical birthworker weave these elements together?
Join as we explore:
~gaps in our current birth team relationships
~assumptions and biases from various birthworker roles that fuel animosity
~"scope of practice" and how that language impacts doula relationships
~biases around what makes a "good" or "bad" doula
~holding space for the birth, and not just the birthing person
~advocacy as an element of holding space
~improving hospital and community doula relations
~enacting the human elements of trauma-informed care
~moving past patriarchial roots in birthcare to earn trust
and so. much. more.
Full shownotes with extra info & resources: https://www.yourbirthpartners.org/doulas-advocacy

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