Doula Program Description
The following eleven modules are required for completion of the Madriella Doula Program.  All of the modules are included in the course. The modules should be completed in order, you will receive an email with a link to the download page after your registration has been processed.  If you are in a hurry to get the massage therapy continuing education hours for license renewal you may take that course first.


DLA001: The Role of the Doula
This introductory course begins your journey towards certification as a birth assistant, or Doula. In this course we present a fully functional and realistic description of the role of the Doula in today's society, as well as providing a historical/traditional background for the role of the "woman's helper".

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe the Basic job duties of a Birth Doula and Postpartum Doula.
  • List and describe the five facets of Doula support.
  • Differentiate between a License and a Certification.
  • Demonstrate familiarity with the Madriella Doula Scope of Practice.
DLA002: Service Contracts and Delivery
Although our program is avocational doulas are still required to form a contract with the expecting mother.  The contract details what services she will be providing, even if she is not charging for them. This module is a guide to how those contracts should be written.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe the purposes of a service contract.
  • List the critical elements of a service contract.

DLA003: Birth Prep and Exercises at Home
This course is a detailed presentation of the preparations you as a Doula can help the mother do to prepare for birth. This course includes several hypertext video links that take you to our online videos, where the hands on techniques are demonstrated for you. The videos can be downloaded to your computer and practiced at home, over and over until you feel confident.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • List and describe ten things you can teach a woman to do at home to prepare herself mentally for birth.
  • Demonstrate the different exercises you can instruct mom to do at home to prepare her body for birth.
DLA004: Birth Planning
This course is a practical guide to the formation and execution of the birth plan. It provides you with tools you can use to encourage your mothers to advocate for the kind of birth they want. You will learn how to empower
mothers and their support people.

Birth Plans are presented as examples, as well as a Birth Planning work sheet you can use to help your mothers plan for the birth they want.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe the purpose of a Birth Plan.
  • List the crucial elements of a plan.
  • Define Self-Advocacy in the context of birth.
  • Describe the need for flexibility and contingency planning.
DLA005: The Doula in the Delivery Room
This course dives in to the action of the delivery room. Here you will find a summary of the different environments you may be called to serve in (hospital, home, water, etc). It also contains a stage by stage examination
of labor, with detailed suggestions of what the mother needs at each stage and what you should be doing.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe the most common delivery environments.
  • List and describe the stages of labor.
  • Demonstrate appropriate support at each stage of labor.
DLA006: The Physiology of Birth
This course is a review of the miracle of birth from a scientific prospective. There are few things as amazing as the human body in birth, and this course is a detailed review of the entire process.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe how the body uses hormones to prepare for birth.
  • Identify the parts of the Bony Pelvis and the Soft Pelvis.
  • Describe what causes a contraction.
DLA007: Relaxation Techniques
This course instructs you in the proper application of the relaxation techniques that you as a Doula can use to assist the mother during labor. The theory and application of each technique is explained

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:

  • Describe the physiological response to stress and its impact on pregnancy, labor and birth.
  • List and describe four different relaxation techniques.

DLA008: Positioning for Birth
This course will introduce you to a variety of different postures and stances for labor and birth. These positions are tried and true, and have been practiced by laboring women around the world for centuries.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Identify six different positions that can be used safely during labor and delivery.
  • List the pros and cons of each position.
DLA009: Hospital Procedures and Protocols
The Doula is considered a non-medical birth assistant, but we still operate in a hospital and because of this it is important that we know and understand what to expect in the environment. This course examines the most common rules for hospital delivery rooms across the country. It is designed to help you stay out of the way of the people delivering the baby, while allowing you to stay at the mothers’ side, where you belong.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe what happens in a typical labor and delivery hospital admission.
  • List and describe four medical procedures that may be required of the mother.
DLA010: Post Partum Support
This course takes you through the physical and emotional needs of the mother immediately after birth. Topics include mother and infant bonding suggestions, breastfeeding tips and postpartum emotional support.

Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the Doula should be able to:
  • Describe areas of difficulty new mothers face when breastfeeding.
  • Describe the emotional challenges presented in postpartum and what measures the Doula can take to ease the period of transition.

EMS004: Massage for the Laboring Woman
This course goes beyond the standard prenatal massage techniques and takes the massage practitioner
into the delivery room, where they can administer specific techniques designed to decrease the pain and
discomfort of birth. It includes detailed illustrations of Swedish, and Shiatsu techniques that can be used
at home and in a hospital delivery room to provide natural pain relief.

Educational Objecitves
Upon completion of this home study continuing education course, the massage practitioner should be
able to:
  • Describe the physiology of labor, including the muscles used and the origin of the pain involved.
  • Identity the Swedish massage techniques useful for treating laboring women.
  • List safe positions for the laboring woman to receive massage.
  • Identify the different stages of labor and which massage techniques are appropriate for each one.

This module is the only part of the program that you are charged for and it costs $50.  It is offered by the Somatic Arts and Sciences Institute, an NCBTMB Approved Provider of Continuing Education for Massage Therapists. It is worth 6 Hours of Continuing Education.