Introducing the Birth Doula Project

There is increasing interest in birth doulas from pregnant women and birthing people in the UK. Doulas are not medically trained but are seen as a source of physical and emotional support for the birthing person. They are not formally regulated professionals, and the exact definition and boundaries of their role remains open to interpretation.

As doulas are largely unregulated, some have raised concerns as to quality and consistency of care or service provision. There is also evidence that doulas can positively impact birth outcomes. The lack of clarity around their role leads to significant uncertainty for doulas, those who engage doulas, and for healthcare professionals. The project aims to produce original knowledge on the nature and role of birth doulas and to understand their position in relation to existing medico-legal frameworks.

Through this project, we aim to better understand:

• What a birth doula is, and how the boundaries of their role are understood by different key actors involved in birth
• The inter-professional dynamics between birth doulas and healthcare professionals 
• How different parties involved in birth understand and engage with legal frameworks when undertaking work in the doula role, or working with doulas.  

This project is funded by Wellcome, through the BA/Leverhulme Small Grant Scheme. It has received ethical approval from Manchester Metropolitan University Faculty of Business and Law Research Ethics Committee.