I am writing this post from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, just after the conclusion of the DONA International 2018 Summit that I attended along with my other doula colleagues. I found myself sharing, over and over again, Lamaze International resources with other doulas who were looking for information to direct their clients to when the clients wanted online childbirth education.

While some doulas are also childbirth educators, the role of the doula and the educator are completely different. As an LCCE educator, I am very familiar with many of the resources available to me (and my students) from Lamaze. I knew the carefully curated and evidenced-based information from Lamaze International would be very useful for doulas to direct clients to. The doulas I shared with were delighted to learn of how many resources they might share with their clients.

Online Childbirth Education

If your clients are looking for concise and quality online childbirth education information, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Lamaze International online classes. There your clients will find classes on Labor Pain Management, the Six Healthy Birth Practices, Breastfeeding Basics, Bringing Home Baby, Sex During Pregnancy and Beyond and so much much more. There are even specialized classes for people who are planning a vaginal birth after a cesarean (VBAC). The online classes include discussion forums and interactive activities and videos to enhance learning.

Six Healthy Birth Practices

The Six Healthy Birth Practices are six simple and evidenced-based principles that promote a safe and healthy birth. They could even work as a six-line birth plan! Each care practice has a comprehensive bibliography that supports the recommendations. These citations are peer-reviewed and current. Each birth practice has an accompanying short video that is easy to watch and supports each practice.  The bibliography section is updated periodically to reflect the most current research.

Infographics

Graphically pleasing, concise and easy to follow, the Lamaze International infographics are a great resource for today's parents. Covering a variety of important topics, these infographics reinforce that an informed pregnant consumer is better prepared to navigate their pregnancy, birth and postpartum circumstances.

Pregnancy Week by Week emails

Your clients who are newly pregnant may be interested in signing up for the Your Pregnancy Week by Week emails. Short, easy to digest emails of information that are personalized for their specific week in pregnancy. There are lots of useful links and images in each email where families can find more information

Pregnancy to Parenting App

The Lamaze International smartphone app is an all in one stop for expectant families. Offering information for the prenatal period that is relevant and useful to parents, the app continues to be useful after the birth with its breastfeeding features that help get the parent-baby dyad off the right start. Many new parents consider their phone to be their trusty sidekick and the Pregnancy to Parenting app is so very useful for providing information to families who want accurate and evidenced-based resources at their fingertips.

Giving Birth with Confidence blog

The Giving Birth with Confidence blog is published three times a week and written directly for pregnant and new parents. Chock full of current research, useful information and quick facts on a variety of topics, delivered in a consumer-friendly way. I would not hesitate to recommend this resource to my clients, knowing they will be finding useful information every time the blog is published.

Conclusion

Doulas are an evidenced-based and valuable addition to families around the world who are preparing to birth and parent their child. Doulas will want to share quality resources with their clients. There is nothing better than providing the best information out there to satisfy your clients' desire to learn how to have a safe and healthy pregnancy, birth and parenting experience. Lamaze International's resources are quality, accurate sources of information delivered in a variety of ways (online class, app, email newsletter, infographic and more) to meet the needs of today's parents wherever they are in their journey to becoming parents. I invite doulas to explore our wide variety of resources available to pregnant families and consider making sure that Lamaze is at the top of your list of resources to pass on to your clients. Should you yourself be interested in becoming a childbirth educator, consider exploring this option and finding a workshop near you.

Published: July 23, 2018

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