User:Clphan/sandbox

Motivations and challenges
In 2010, a survey of professional Canadian doulas found that the common motivations for doula work include "desire to support women in childbirth, personal interest, and a wish to share their own positive birth experience with others" but didn't see the work as a means to create steady income.[36] Doulas of color also found motivation in providing care for their racial, ethnic and cultural communities so as to provide culturally competent care.[37] Volunteer doulas often saw doula work as a way to "help others, to establish a practice as an employed doula, and to have a route into nursing or midwifery."[38]

A 2004 study of North American doulas identified challenges to doula work such as lack of support from clinicians, balancing doula work with family and other work obligations, and being on call.[39] Volunteer doulas also found challenges in individuals' poor understanding of the doulas role, lack of clear boundaries, and complex socio-economic issues.[38]

In the UK, the National Health Service and promotion of midwifery for low-risk pregnancies provide a continuity of care not available to North American pregnant individuals, but still are seeing an upswing in doulas. This pattern has been suggested to be a result of the lack of midwives available and a move to provide doulas to individuals at greater risk for poor outcomes.[38]

Perceptions
A 2018 study examined women's perceptions of doulas in several different countries, including Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Malawi, Sweden, Nepal, Russia, Canada, and the United States of America. Having continuous support from a companion such as a doula is highly appreciated by most women. However, perceptions may vary from country to country due to cultural factors, such as an emphasis on modesty and privacy, which may affect what kind of support a women prefers. While it has been shown that labor companionship is valued by women, the practice itself is not universal across healthcare systems and implementation may be difficult as it requires structural and organizational changes.

Motivations, perceptions, and challenges
In 2010, a survey of professional Canadian doulas found that the common motivations for doula work include "desire to support women in childbirth, personal interest, and a wish to share their own positive birth experience with others" but didn't see the work as a means to create steady income.[36] Doulas of color also found motivation in providing care for their racial, ethnic and cultural communities so as to provide culturally competent care.[37] Volunteer doulas often saw doula work as a way to "help others, to establish a practice as an employed doula, and to have a route into nursing or midwifery."[38]

A 2004 study of North American doulas identified challenges to doula work such as lack of support from clinicians, balancing doula work with family and other work obligations, and being on call.[39] Volunteer doulas also found challenges in individuals' poor understanding of the doula's role, lack of clear boundaries, and complex socio-economic issues.[38]

In the UK, the National Health Service and promotion of midwifery for low-risk pregnancies provide a continuity of care not available to North American pregnant individuals, but still are seeing an upswing in doulas. This pattern has been suggested to be a result of the lack of midwives available and a move to provide doulas to individuals at greater risk for poor outcomes.[38]

A 2018 study examined women's perceptions of doulas in several different countries, including Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Malawi, Sweden, Nepal, Russia, Canada, and the United States of America and found that having continuous support from a companion such as a doula was highly appreciated by most women.[40] However, perceptions may vary from country to country due to cultural factors, such as an emphasis on modesty and privacy, which may affect what kind of support a women prefers.[40] While it has been shown that labor companionship is valued by women, the practice itself is not universal across global healthcare systems and implementation may be difficult as it will require structural and organizational changes.[41]

A 2019 study reviewed perceptions of labor companionship across mostly high income countries and found barriers that prevent doula care from being universally implemented.[42] These challenges are due to a multitude of factors dealing with perception (providers not understanding the benefits or roles, other medical aspects being seen as more important) and logistics (gaps in policy, difficulty of integration, lack of training).[42]