Requirements for Certification
*Completion of the required reading list (see below)
*Observe/Audit a series of Childbirth Preparation Classes
*Written summaries of 6 births you have attended - of which 3 can be births you have attended prior to attending the workshop.
*Written evaluations from 3 people you've assisted or worked with (i.e., women you've helped in labor, midwives, doctors, nurses -- any combination is fine)
*Successful completion of the written exam
*Current membership
*Attendance at our weekend Birth Doula Training workshop (must be no longer than 5 years prior to sending in completed requirements)
You may choose to be listed in the Provider Directory after completion of the workshop. We recommend that our participants follow through with the certification process and encourage completion within a year of the training. When all requirements are successfully fulfilled you will receive your Certification documentation. Your listing on the website will be upgraded to "Certified Professional Doula" upon completion of all requirements.
Required Reading List
Required for Birth Doula Certification:"toLabor Birth Doula Training Manual" Resources/Articles section
"Nursing Mother's Companion" (Huggins) or "Bestfeeding" (Renfrew, Fisher, Arms)
"Birth As An American Rite of Passage" – Robbie Davis-Floyd
"The Birth Partner" – Penny Simkin
"The Complete Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth" – Shelia Kitzinger
"Pushed" – Jennifer Block
"Heart and Hands" – Elizabeth Davis
"The VBAC Companion" – Diana Korte or "Birth After Cesarean" – Bruce Flamm
"What Every Pregnant Woman Needs to Know About Cesarean Section"-www.chilbirthconnections.org
"Mothering the New Mother" - Placksin
*"Obstetric Myths vs. Research Realities" – Henci Goer or "A Guide to Effective Care inPregnancy and Childbirth"-Enkin, Keirse & Chalmers
*"Understanding Diagnostic Tests in the Childbearing Year" -Frye
*These last books are required for reference purposes. Although you are not expected to read each book from cover to cover, we do require that you be familiar with their content and strongly encourage you to own or ensure access to a copy once you begin your practice.
Strongly Recommended:
"Active Birth" – Janet Balaskas
"After Baby's Birth: A Women's Way to Wellness" –Robin Lim
"Babies Remember Birth" – David Chamberlain
"The Birth Book" – Bill and Martha Sears
"Birthing From Within" – Pam England
"Cesarean" – Michel Odent
"The Doula’s Guide to Birth" – Ananada Lowe & Rachel Zimmerman
"Ended Beginnings" – Claudia Panuthos and Cathy Romeo
"Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth" – Ina May Gaskin
"Journey Into Motherhood" – Sherri Menelli
"Spiritual Midwifery" – Ina May Gaskin
"Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary"
"The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth" – Henci Goer
"Wise Woman’s Herbal for the Childbearing Year" – Susun Weed
"Silent Knife"–Nancy Wainer (Cohen)
Recommended Reference:
"Getting To Yes"- Fisher and Ury
"Human Labor and Birth" - Oxorn and Foote
"The Doula Book" - Klaus, Kennell and Klaus
"Nurse-Midwifery" - Varney