NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WKBW) — A new hub designed to train and support birth and postpartum doula professionals has launched in Western New York, offering resources to help doulas become credentialed Medicaid providers in New York State.
The Doula Resource Boutique, operated by Calming Nature Doula Center and located in Buffalo and Niagara Falls, is open to both new and experienced doulas, serving families across Western New York and New York State.
The hub offers training, mentorship, professional development and guidance on Medicaid enrollment.
Shannon Jones, CEO of Calming Nature Doula Center, Inc., said the hub was created to fill a gap in support for doula professionals.
"The Doula Resource Boutique is a support system for doulas looking for that support, but also to provide guidance, to be able to help them throughout their career. So currently, right now there is no system set up in place for doulas to have that support, to have that resource, so this is one of the reasons why we came up with the doula boutique."
Jones said the goal is to close gaps in maternal health care and build a stronger, more sustainable doula workforce.
Black mothers who give birth are five times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white mothers who give birth in New York State, according to the New York State Department of Health.
Jones said the boutique works to address those disparities by equipping doulas with evidence-based information and tools to better support expectant mothers.
"Large variety of different things that we support them with is emotional, physical, and informational support. All of the information that we do provide is evidence-based information, so it's stuff that has been known through research and studies that say this is actually supportive and helpful to individuals looking to have that type of experience but also have better outcomes."
Jones said that support extends directly into the labor and delivery experience.
"We do try to push a lot of education and information for those moms to have those resources, but also to have that support that they need and have that education that can aid in the actual labor itself, making labor more comfortable, often times making the length of labor shorter, but also giving them more overall satisfaction with the labor experience themselves."
