Doulas

Community-based doulas are nonmedical, unlicensed, trained professionals who provide emotional, physical, and informational support to birthing people during pregnancy and up to one year postpartum. Community-based doulas differ from lay and other birth doulas because they are specifically trained to provide culturally sensitive care and focus on those who are more likely to experience discrimination in traditional healthcare settings.

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Access to community-based doulas promotes healthier and more equitable infant birth outcomes, maternal and child health, and nurturing and responsive parenting.

The Latest

Vanderbilt University’s Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center (PN-3) just issued its annual State Policy Roadmap, exploring ways that the states (and D.C.) can improve conditions so infants and toddlers can thrive. The Roadmap focuses on 12 solutions shown
This year, the Prenatal-to-3 State Policy Roadmap—a guide for state leaders on the most effective investments to ensure all children thrive from the start, based on the most rigorous evidence available—has expanded. The Roadmap policies
What a year for prenatal-to-3 state policy! In 2023, states across the country made substantial investments in policies to support young children and their families. In today’s post, we provide a snapshot of states’ progress
DEEP DIVE WEBINAR October 31, 2023 Evidence has shown that community-based doulas are a critical part of a comprehensive system of care to improve our nation’s maternal health crisis. That’s why we’re excited to have
Early in her career, Cynthia Osborne learned that the pathway to opportunity is paved by much more than a quality education. In 1994, a few years after graduating from college, Osborne began teaching middle school
Last Thursday, October 12, the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center hosted our fourth annual Research to Policy Summit . We shared the many ways state policy choices impact families, demonstrated these impacts through our simulation of a family of three in different states, detailed the most effective policies states can employ to help children thrive from the start, and summarized the progress states have made this year toward implementing effective policies.