DONA presented a great workshop for doulas in Lethbridge on May 1st called Politics, Boundaries and Change, which dealt with so many of the issues that doulas face interacting with the hospitals, other doulas and creating a good reputation for the profession in communities. I think I am going to address some blogs directly to some of these issues in the future, but in the meantime, check out the blog Doula Speak of Sheri Deveney, who was one of our awesome trainers and addresses these issues and more extremely well. I look at someone like Sheri, her wisdom and sense of humour, huge knowledge and understanding and I think - that is where I want to be in 15 years. I especially appreciate that she knows what her strengths and weaknesses are and is constantly self-reflecting. And she allows herself to be vulnerable. Just seeing her work as a trainer is pretty amazing, I imagine seeing her work as a doula would be even more so.
At the workshop we talked about making assumptions about what other people think based on offhand comments. I have heard some negative comments about medical professionals, but I plan to reserve judgement, not only until I have interacted with them myself, but even after that, not taking comments personally and always believing that opinions can be changed.
I don't think that it is realistic to expect every doctor and nurse to be a strong advocate for doulas. They often have no idea what we really do, and that is not their fault as many have had little or no exposure to doulas (especially true in Southern Alberta, I am sad to say). I think that by sharing information with those who are interested and by supporting our clients in a manner that is respectful, professional and caring will we eventually get to a place where more medical professionals understand and value what we do. But that will literally take years. And it will be led not by us, but by the pregnant women who are seeking out doula services.
Another thing we learned in the workshop is that a doula is not an equal member of the 'birth team' and will alway have less power than the medical staff and that it is okay, our job is to support our client, not have our egos stroked to feel 'as good as' a doctor. I am going to wait to go into in more detail on this one once I experience being a doula in a birth situation, but it is important to keep in mind before then. It doesn't help my clients for me to assume that the health professionals are hostile and don't want me there. Likely, the medical staff don't have much opinion about it one way or the other. If they are supportive of doulas, then great. If they don't appreciate what I do, my job is to change their point of view, not through my words, but through my actions. And it will take a long time.
