DONA doula trainer, Debra Catlin, will be back again at the Portland Mama Baby Center in October, 2012 for a 4-day long DONA birth doula training.
October 11th, 2012 is the Introduction to Childbirth for Doulas class that is a DONA prerequisite to the birth doula workshop. This $100 class is one way to meet the DONA requirement to “Obtain basic knowledge about childbirth prior to the Birth Doula workshop.” There are other options on Debra’s web site that might be available to you to meet this requirement. If you have questions, be sure to ask Debra. Her contact info is below. Here’s a quick glance at what that class offers:
The DONA birth doula workshop is from October 12th-14th and includes 12 distinct sessions or units, making it an intense, but yet comprehensible and salient course that has a logical progression, leading student doulas step by step to the next lesson.
Day 1 8:00 AM-6:00 PM
Session 1 Implications of a Woman’s Birth Experience
I. Introductions and Overview
II. The Heart of Doula Work-Emotional Support
III. Sharing Birth Stories: “What Women Remember about Birth”
IV. Listening for Needs
Session 2 Influences on the Childbearing Experience
I. Beliefs and Messages About Childbirth
II. Shaping Human Development-Lessons from Perinatal Psychology
III. Personal and Cultural Influences
IV. Maternity Care Practices
V. The Gentle Birth Movement- and “Ecstatic Birth”
Session 3 The Role of the Birth Doula
I. The Doula’s Role: Meeting Labor Support Needs
II. Benefits, Qualities, and Realities of Doula Work
III. Working with the Partner
IV. Birth Doula Certification Requirements
Session 4 Therapeutic Presence
I. Exploring Beliefs, Promoting Confidence
II. Setting Intentions
III. Mastering Fears
IV. Centering and Grounding
V. Connecting Through Entrainment
Day 2 8:00 AM-6:00 PM
Session 5 Early Labor Assistance
I. The Doula’s Bag of Tricks for Pain Management
II. Early Labor Care Plan
III. Emotional Needs of Early Labor
IV. Guidance with Relaxation and Breathing
V. Working as a Team with Mom and Partner
Session 6 Active Labor Support
I. Emotional Needs and Responses of Active Labor
II. Assisting Breathing, Vocalization and Attention Focusing
III. Incorporating Massage and Rhythm
IV. Coping Strategy Assessment
V. Supporting the Mother and Partner in Active Labor
Session 7 Challenging Labors
I. Fast Labors
II. Promoting Labor Progress
A.Optimal Fetal Positioning
B. Characteristics of Prolonged Labors
C. More Positions and Movement
III. Posterior and Asynclitic Variations
A. Positions for Rotation and Descent
B.Back Labor Pain Relief Measures
Session 8 Supporting Second Stage
I. Transition-Emotional Needs and Support
II. Role Play of Pushing Guidance
III. Second Stage Challenges
IV. Birth Videos
Day 3 8:00 AM-6:00 PM
Session 9 Role of the Doula in Difficult Births
I. DONA Standards of Practice and Code of Ethics
II. Being a Maternity Care Team Member
III. Challenges and Dilemmas in Doula Work
IV. The Advocacy Role
V. ”What if, What next?” Exercise
Session 10 Supporting Difficult Births
I. Emotional Challenges-The Take Charge Routine
II. Compassionate Care with Medications
III. Supporting Cesarean Birth
IV. Unexpected Outcomes
Session 11 Prenatal Client Contact and Birth Attendance
I. Initial Contact and Prenatal Interviews
A.Your Birth Package and Fees
B.Letter of Agreement
C.Labor and Birth Preferences
D.Addressing Special Needs/VBAC
II. Values Clarification
III. Getting Ready for the Birth
A. Arranging Back-up
B.Being on-call
C. Taking Care of Yourself
Session 12 Postpartum Care and Your Doula Business
I. Doula’s Role in Immediate Postpartum
II. Postnatal Contacts
A. Assessments of Well-being and Supporting Breastfeeding
B. Debriefing and Integrating the Birth
III. Starting Your Business
IV. Marketing and Promotion
Early bird registration ends on September 14th, 2012 (save $25 and register early for $400.00) and the final closing registration date is September 28th ($425.00). To save you the searching time, I did some research to compare prices for doula training in Portland: the labor doula training at Birthingway is $485 and the DONA birth doula training through MotherTree Birth Services is $450.00.
There are many labor and birth doula workshops and trainings regularly available in Portland, so why would I choose to host Debra Catlin’s workshop at the MamaBaby Center and register my own staff in her training? I love a weekend intensive – I’m just that kind of person. I want to do the hours, get them out of the way, and get to the births. I like other programs, but I ultimately think if you’re going to invest that much money into a certification, then you need to invest in a certification that offers a return on your investment quickly, and I believe that’s what you get with Debra Catlin’s DONA training workshop.
If there is enough interest from the doulas who attend this DONA training, I will plan to teach another 6-week session of The Business of Being a Doula that will begin at the beginning of November. Opportunities/requests for low cost births through the Portland MamaBaby Center are fulfilled by doulas who are working towards certification. This works out to be a win-win – we can serve more Mamas and provide guidance and mentoring to new doulas at the same time!
