Volunteer Doula Program celebrates 20 years

A program that pairs expecting mothers with volunteer doulas out of Spryfield, N.S., is celebrating 20 years of service.

The Volunteer Doula Program (VDP) has been operating out of the Chebucto Family Centre since 1996and has helped thousands of mothers with pre- and post-natal support.

Two decades ago, the program's founders, Hilary Marentette and Joan O'Keefe, saw a need for accessible help for expecting mothers in the Halifax Regional Municipality.

Free support to pregnant mothers

They had heard of volunteer doula programs elsewhere, wherein trained women could offer free support to pregnant mothersthroughout labour and delivery.(More recently,maledoulashave begun working in Canada.)

At the time, O'Keefe was the co-ordinator of the Chebucto Family Centre and saw an opportunity to host volunteer doula services out of its location in Spryfield.

"We actually acted on it right away," she said.

Marentette, nicknamed The Grand Doula, helped O'Keefe recruit the centre's female staff. The two began seeking proper training and funding, as well as certification from Doulas of North America. Soon after, they officially launched the Volunteer Doula Program in July of 1996.

'The grandmother to many'

"It was a dream come true to get the program started," she said. "We're proud that the program came out of an agency in Spryfield, and it serves the whole municipality and beyond."

Inspired by the work of the volunteer doulas, O'Keefe says she sought her doula certification in 2010.

"It's just wonderful," she said. "Some of the mothers that I've worked with have been between the ages of 17 and 43, and I feel sometimes like I'm the grandmother of many."

Highs and lows

O'Keefe says it wasn't always easy to keep the program running.

"It's always been a difficult program to fund," she said. "In those early years, I was responsible to help get the money for it and I still do that."

As an active Sister of Charity, O'Keefe is able to request a ministry grant by virtue of her own work as a volunteer doula. Paired with support from the wider community, she says the program is "thriving."

The deeds of a doula

The Volunteer Doula Program has a vision of providing a doula for every woman who wants one. O'Keefe says that she, as well as the hundreds of other volunteer doulas, help women in Spryfield and beyond, including many young mothers and newcomers to Canada.

The program works like this: eight weeks before their due date, women who are eligible for support are matched with a volunteer doula. Doulas are trained to learn about an expecting mother's birth preferencesand to assist in creating a birth plan.

The doula is then on-call for labour and birthand can provide informational, emotional and physical support.

Volunteer doulas can also provide support for up to six weeks after birth to help with breastfeeding, baby care, and general motherhood needs.

More information on the Volunteer Doula Program can be found here.