Keywords
doula
quality of perinatal care
collaboration
cooperation
How to Cite
Abstract
A doula is an independent professional who provides emotional, physical and informational support to women during pregnancy, labor and the postpartum period. A doula is not medically qualified, but is trained in techniques to provide comfort, relaxation and proper breathing to women in labor during birth. The relationship between doulas and other members of the perinatal care team has an impact on women’s satisfaction and the quality of care provided. The purpose of our study was to analyze the mutual perceptions of the two professional groups and to subjectively assess the actual cooperation between midwives and doulas; Methods: The survey instrument for examining mutual perceptions of midwives and doulas in the context of interprofessional collaboration was a self-administered questionnaire consisting of 13 items containing beliefs about collaboration between doulas and midwives and items describing experiences of collaboration between the groups. A total of 238 women participated in the survey: 165 midwives and 73 doulas. Results: Mutual perceptions of midwives and doulas can be described as positive or neutral. Examination of the experience of collaboration indicates a predominance of positive behavior. In almost all items, the beliefs of doulas and midwives differed significantly from each other showing the different perspectives of the two professional groups. The highest score in both groups was given to the statement Appropriate relationships between midwives and doulas have an impact on the satisfaction of parturients, which means that both doulas and midwives agree with it. Conclusions: There is potential for the dissemination of the doula profession in the Polish health care system. Both professions show more positive or neutral perceptions of each other than negative perceptions, which provides an opportunity to build a satisfying collaboration. The findings underscore the need to reconcile different attitudes in order to foster effective team practice and improve midwifery care outcomes. Training and meetings to learn about roles, competencies and explore each other’s work models provide an opportunity to strengthen this collaboration.
References
Adams, E. and Bianchi, A. (2004). Can a Nurse and a Doula Exist in the Same Room?. International Journal of Childbirth Education, 19(4), 12-15.
Akhavan, S. and Lundgren, I. (2012). Midwives’ experiences of doula support for immigrant women in Sweden – A qualitative study. Midwifery, 28(1), 80-85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2010.11.004
Ballen, L.E. and Fulcher, A.J. (2006). Nurses and doulas: Complementary roles to provide optimal maternity care. JOGNN – Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing, 35(2), 304-311. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00041.x
Berg, M. and Terstad, A. (2006). Swedish women’s experiences of doula support during childbirth. Midwifery, 22(4), 330-338. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2005.09.006
de Carvalho Leite, J.R. and Awoko Higginbottom, G.M. (2017). Doulas in Canada: A Scoping Review. Canadian Journal of Midwifery Research & Practice, 16(1), 23.
Eftekhary, S., Klein, M.C. and Xu, S.Y. (2010). The life of a Canadian doula: successes, confusion, and conflict. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada, 32(7), 642-649. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1701-2163(16)34567-4
Goshomi, U. (2023). Interprofessional collaboration in maternity care. African Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health, 17(2), 1-1. https://doi.org/10.12968/ajmw.2023.0019
Homer, C.S.E. et al. (2014). The projected effect of scaling up midwifery. The Lancet, 384(9948), 1146-1157. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60790-X
Iwanowicz-Palus, G.J., Stadnicka, G. and Bień, A. (2013). Organizacja opieki przedkoncepcyjnej i okołoporodowej determinantą zdrowia rodziny i społeczeństwa. Medycyna Ogólna i Nauki o Zdrowiu, 19(3), 313-318.
Jin, Y., Wu, Y. and Li, J. (2022). Midwife empathy and its association with the childbirth experience: a cross-sectional study. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 22(1), 960. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-022-05309-3
Khaw, S.M.-L. et al. (2023). Collaborative relationships between doulas and maternity care providers when supporting migrant women during labour and birth. Midwifery, 125, 103791. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2023.103791
Klein, M.C. et al. (2009). The attitudes of Canadian maternity care practitioners towards labour and birth: many differences but important similarities. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada, 31(9), 827-840. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1701-2163(16)34301-8
Klein, M.C. et al. (2011). Attitudes of the New Generation of Canadian Obstetricians: How Do They Differ from Their Predecessors?. Birth, 38(2), 129-139. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-536X.2010.00462.x
Kodeks Etyczny Douli – Stowarzyszenie DOULA w Polsce (2019). (From:) https://www.doula.org.pl/o-douli/kodeks-etyczny-douli (access: 8.06.2024).
Lanning, R.K. et al. (2019). Doulas in the Operating Room: An Innovative Approach to Supporting Skin-to-Skin Care During Cesarean Birth. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health, 64(1), 112-117. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.12930
Lucas, L. and Wright, E. (2019). Attitudes of Physicians, Midwives, and Nurses About Doulas: A Scoping Review. MCN: The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, 44(1), 33-39.
Lundgren, I. (2010). Swedish women’s experiences of doula support during childbirth. Midwifery, 26(2), 173-180.
McLeish, J. and Redshaw, M. (2018). A qualitative study of volunteer doulas working alongside midwives at births in England: Mothers’ and doulas’ experiences. Midwifery, 56, 53-60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2017.10.002
McMahon, M. and Morris, M. (2018). Doulas and midwives: a powerful alliance. Practising Midwife, 21(3), 9-13.
Meadow, S.L. (2015). Defining the doula’s role: fostering relational autonomy. Health Expectations: An International Journal of Public Participation in Health Care and Health Policy, 18(6), 3057-3068. https://doi.org/10.1111/hex.12290
Middlemiss, L. (2015). Doulas ... complementary or conflicting?.Midwives, 18, 66-68.
Neel, K. et al. (2019). Hospital-based maternity care practitioners’ perceptions of doulas. Birth (Berkeley, Calif.), 46(2), 355-361. https://doi.org/10.1111/birt.12420
Papagni, K., & Buckner, E. (2006) Doula support and attitudes of intrapartum nurses: A qualitative study from the patient’s perspective. The Journal of Perinatal Education, 15(1), 11-18.
Roth, L.M. et al. (2016). North American Nurses’ and Doulas’ Views of Each Other. JOGNN – Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing, 45(6), 790-800. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jogn.2016.06.011
Rozporządzenie Ministra Zdrowia z dnia 16 sierpnia 2018 r. w sprawie standardu organizacyjnego opieki okołoporodowej (Dz. U 2018 r. poz. 1756). (From:) https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20180001756 (access: 19.04.2024).
Shamian, J. (2014). Interprofessional collaboration, the only way to Save Every Woman and Every Child. The Lancet, 384(9948), e41-42. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60858-8
Siboulet, C. (2023). Transforming from Doula to Midwife, All4Maternity. (From:) https://www.all4maternity.com/transforming-from-doula-to-midwife/ (access: 9.06.2024).
Smid, M. et al. (2010). Bringing two worlds together: Exploring the integration of traditional midwives as doulas in Mexican public hospitals. Health Care for Women International, 31(6), 475-498. https://doi.org/10.1080/07399331003628438
Spiby, H. et al. (2015) Multisite implementation of trained volunteer doula support for disadvantaged childbearing women: a mixed-methods evaluation. Southampton (UK): NIHR Journals Library (Health Services and Delivery Research). (From:) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK280017/ (access: 9.05.2021).
Steel, A. et al. (2013). A preliminary profile of Australian women accessing doula care: Findings from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 53(6), 589-592. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajo.12123
Stevens, J. et al. (2011). Midwives’ and doulas’ perspectives of the role of the doula in Australia: A qualitative study. Midwifery, 27(4), 509-516.
Turner, D. et al. (2022). “Doulas shouldn’t be considered visitors, we should be considered a part of [the] team”: doula care in Georgia, USA during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters, 30(1), 2133351. https://doi.org/10.1080/26410397.2022.2133351
Ustawa z dnia 15 lipca 2011 r. o zawodach pielęgniarki i położnej (2011). (From:) https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=wdu20111741039 (access: 9.05.2021).
Waller-Wise, R. (2018). Fostering Collegial Collaboration Between Labor Nurses and Doulas. Nursing for Women’s Health, 22(3), 212-218. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nwh.2018.03.006
Wójcik-Brylska, K., Pawlicka, P., Tataj-Puzyna, U., Szlendak, B., Węgrzynowska, M., et al. (2023). Cooperation between midwives and doulas in the context of perinatal care – a integrative review of qualitative and quantitative studies. Midwifery, 124, 1-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2023.103731
Wójcik-Brylska, K., Pawlicka, P., Tataj-Puzyna, U., Szlendak, B. and Baranowska, B. (2023). “Do we need doulas…?” – Perspectives of maternity care managers on the role of doulas in Poland. Nursing Open, 10(11), 7186-7200. https://doi.org/10.1002/nop2.1965