Anybody see NBC this morning and their "piece" on Doulas?

[In Exile]

I never watch that stuff for a reason-but boy, that was awful.

It was a whole segment litereally bashing doulas. Showing an OB that proudly says into the cameras that at her hospital that "don't allow doulas". (Reston Hospital in Virginia) Now, that most likely something people here would like to know upfront so nobody wastes time- but that was deliberate missinformation. More like "warning".

They should do a correction, that was seriously disgusting.

Wow, somebody out there must feel really threatened to air that much nonsense.

NBC had this ( http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27808452/ )
on their website, that sounded interesting- and the actual segment was, surprise, the complete authoritarian difference.


Doulas are out there to disturb, that was the message.

[MegBoz]

The freakin' WORD 'doula' comes from the Greek for 'slave' or servant to woman. Her job is defined as "labor support" to help Moms through labor.

How can anyone in their right mind "bash" such a thing! That's SICK, just SICK!

[Shelsi]

Ugh. I didn't see the piece but I just moved to northern VA. If for whatever reason I'd have to go to a hospital to give birth I'll be sure to avoid that hospital! I don't even want to think about what other "policies" they may have in place. :

[In Exile]

Well, at least you know who to avoid.

But honestly, that was a very disturbing piece. It was like a wagging, warning finger saying, women, doulas are dangerous. It is so obvious why those folks there feel threatened. (I am sure there are bad doulas, just as you have decent Docs and Midwifes, there are also the black sheep out there)

But what really struck me was the absolute tone of authority they had. For every second they showed a Doula, they showed 2 OBs bashing Doulas twice as long. It was pretty clear who was supposed to get the main show. My favourite: "Remember, you Doctors are the head of the team making decisions". That said it all.

I just looked at the maternity ward site of Reston Hopital. They sound so "harmless", maybe they should put that info on the website, "we don't want your doula and forbid you to have one"....I was wondering if the particular OB that was complaining about the Doulas, had a certain style- if she in particular had so many "bad" doula experiences, kwim? That to me is quite the assesment of what kind of "care" to expect.

[Sheryl1678]

It was very misleading. The bottom line is that doulas help to minimize unnecessary and unwanted interventions and the hospital staff hates that. Mothers love it but they failed to mention that. Very sad.

[Mrsboyko]

I missed it. What were they saying was so bad about doulas? I can really only see the good. they can not tell a woman what to do. THey CAN remind her of her previous decisions though. Or explain a procedure to her that the doc/ nurse doesn't have time for (or doesn't want to). Rreally, they are the leason to informed concent.

[MegBoz]

Natural birth & evidence-based maternity care needs a PR agency...

There should be MORE media coverage on the dangers of iatrogenic problems, the inanity of many standard OB procedures (such as "nothing by mouth" & routine inductions at 39/40W for no cause, etc.), the care that is contrary to evidence, etc.

If only I could quit my paying job in marketing & dedicate my life to that....

[Full Heart]

Originally Posted by MegBoz

Natural birth & evidence-based maternity care needs a PR agency...

There should be MORE media coverage on the dangers of iatrogenic problems, the inanity of many standard OB procedures (such as "nothing by mouth" & routine inductions at 39/40W for no cause, etc.), the care that is contrary to evidence, etc.

If only I could quit my paying job in marketing & dedicate my life to that....

Yes, this. I simply do not understand how we can tolerate such terrible stats in this country surrounding birth. We should be ashamed! Yet, its never talked about. I would think the news would love to harp all over it.

[Collinsky]

: I can't stand things like this. It wouldn't be so bad but apparently adults are walking around without the least bit of media literacy to be able to analyze what they're being sold by pieces like this.

[herbanmama]

Yuck. I just watched the clip online and came here to see if there was a discussion on it yet. The whole thing ticked me off. It was all too clear that the animosity towards doulas stems directly from the fact that a client who employs a doula is more likely to question the medical staff and make informed decisions regarding their care, then they go on to suggest that the client actually asks the OB or a nurse for advice on picking a doula? Freaking ridiculous. I love how the doctor interviewed states that a doula will sometimes stand up and say "I don't agree with this", thus leading to disastrous consequences. I am sure that it happens like that in rare isolated incidents, but to include that argument as though it's a common occurrence is misleading and very telling of their bias.

What really got me fired up was the whole "You need a cohesive team and the doctor and nurse are the head of that team" comment at the end. I agree that there needs to be harmony in the birthing room, and that's why I sometimes have to step off when I really want to yell, "No! This isn't right!" But who is in charge? What about the laboring woman? In my book, she and the partner are the head of the team. Were that the actual case, there would be no problem with hospital staff accepting doulas. Damn straight doulas might get in the way - get in the way of the birthing mother being stripped of her decision-making process and left at the whims of the hospital staff! What they don't mention is that most of the 'getting in the way' that doulas do is prior to the actual birth as she informs the parents of their options. Planting those pesky seeds which make women think they actually have rights...

Grrr. I'm a doula in Virginia and was totally not surprised.

[In Exile]

My second favourite right after the "the Doctor and nurse are the head of the decision making team" was "What should a woman do that wants to hire a Doula?"
"Well, you should ask your Doctor first!" laughup:

[amygoforth]

Originally Posted by In Exile

"the Doctor and nurse are the head of the decision making team"

I think my BP skyrocketed at that one. Um, no. The head of the decision-making team is the mother, thankyouverymuch. Her body, her baby, her birth, her life, HER DECISION!

[diamond lil]

That is so sad. At the hospital where I gave birth, the entire hospital staff and my doctor were completely supportive of my doula's presence.

[jecombs]

That piece was infuriating!

But it was good to see that all the comments were pro-doula and anti-Nancy Sniderman!

[kJad29]

I no longer live in NoVa, and I decided against watching the piece on doulas, especially since Reston Hospital has a ban on them. I knew this when I was doing my training 2 years ago (decided against pursuing the career further due to a bad experience in a NoVa hospital). For the record, Reston Hospital has I believe an over 60% c-section rate. The last number I heard was close to 70%, so no wonder they don't want doulas there. They want to do it their way and to h*ll with evidence based care. Just a little warning. That hospital is the pits for natural birth. The best one in the area is Prince William.

[In Exile]

Yeah, no kidding. I did a quick google search on the OB from Reston Hospital-I checked her practice and all three OBs listed state "high risk pregnancy" as their SPECIAL INTEREST. DUH!!! NBC certainly failed to mention that the "high risk management" is not the same as your everyday pregnant mother.

Actually, the Office Website made me shutter-that together with the Info on Reston Hospital's cesarean rate makes me cringe.

I wonder how many people took that segment for face value-knowing the "high risk" approach to it changes things for sure... (yeah, I guess pregnancy is high-risk no matter what, ugh.)

Somebody at NBC should do their homework better!

[Beccadoula]

This whole mess is the very reason that I HIGHLY recommend to my clients that they be totally sure of their OB and hospital. You need to know before hand if the OB or nurse feels that they are "in charge"...if they do than it is NOT the place to attemp doula supported or natural birth (unless there are just NO OTHER OPTIONS). There is a hospital near me that I will not attend births at because of this very attitude. There are good doctors and good nurses there, but the whole system is too junked up for me to be able to recommend it to my clients. Maybe this doctor should consider the question of why this little trend is getting so out of hand...it all points to a growing distrust of modern maternity care...and that is sad. In a great medical situation doulas really would be a luxury, but most women who ask for my help are attempting to step out of the box in some way...and they want someone to help them make it. THIS lady has missed the point entirely...no one would want out of the box if it were a safe and healthy box to be in...and people wouldn't want doulas if they felt it was entirely good to have the OB and nurses "in charge".... WHY can't the woman be "in charge" of her own body???

end rant.

[Sheryl1678]

I posted the clip on my site:
http://childbirth.amuchbetterway.com...he-today-show/

[hipmummy]

Originally Posted by Collinsky

: I can't stand things like this. It wouldn't be so bad but apparently adults are walking around without the least bit of media literacy to be able to analyze what they're being sold by pieces like this.

:

[barefootpoetry]

Ugh, this is sick. I'm glad I didn't hear about it in time to watch it, I'm sure I would have pitched something at the TV and broke it!

I can get why people would be against homebirths. I can even see why people wouldn't understand natural births. But to be ANTI-DOULA??!? You might as well put on a nametag that says, "I don't give a crap about any laboring woman because they're all commodities and I want to make as much money off them as possible." Okay, so it would be a big nametag, but you get my drift!