Safety and Infection Prevention and Control

Communicating effectively with clients, their families, and their healthcare providers is an essential part of working with pregnant and new families which is why it is part of all of our certification training programs.

Effective Communication & Active Listening

When working with clients and the family and caregivers supporting them, you’ll strive for open and honest communication that fosters trust. This unit explores the essential components of verbal and non-verbal communication and the power of effective communication. You’ll learn about the main obstacles to effective communication, using empathy instead of sympathy, and becoming skilled at using open questions to help your clients explore their needs and preferences.

Language & Communication

In this unit, you’ll consider the effect of language on the perception and understanding of birth and the postpartum experience. The way people perceive language affects how they understand concepts. As a birth and lactation professional, your confidence in using explicit language, body language, and your understanding of the cultural context of language all affect the messages you send and how you present information to your clients. You’ll learn about the impact of risk-based and benefits-based language, and develop your skills in establishing empathy and language that works toward eliminating health disparities for your clients.

Active Listening Skills

Sometimes clients don’t want information or input – they may just need a listening ear. When others are given the space to speak freely, they may identify their misconceptions, fears, or the steps they need to take. Active listening skills modeled by yourself can help clients overcome differences between themselves, family members, and their caregivers, enabling them to avoid conflict and resolve challenging situations.

Reflective Practice & Debriefing

Reflection is a process where you look at what happened in a situation and why. Reflection enables us to go beyond the surface of our experiences and explore why we and others acted in certain ways, what influenced us, what choices we made, and whether those choices supported our goals. With reflection, we can see a whole range of alternatives we may not have identified at the time of the event in question and examine why we didn’t identify or choose those alternatives. Reflection helps us to be aware of our power, even if we realize that we didn’t use it. Reflection benefits us not only in our personal and professional lives but also leads us to begin asking different, more effective, questions of our clients, providing them with a vision of a more empowered way of being. In this unit, you’ll develop a strong understanding of the reflective process and how it can enhance your clients’ experiences while providing clear strategies for supporting clients in debriefing using reflective practice techniques.

In this unit, you’ll look at the initial steps to becoming a doula – what your role entails, recognizing the benefits of birth doula support, building relationships, and getting ready to work with your first client. You’ll explore the history of birth support, examine a range of doula business models, consider how to approach the initial contact you have with clients, and begin preparing for working with your first client. You’ll also look at local, regional, and ethical requirements for client confidentiality.

In this unit, you’ll look at the initial steps to becoming a doula – what your role entails, recognizing the benefits of birth doula support, building relationships, and getting ready to work with your first client. You’ll explore the history of birth support, examine a range of doula business models, consider how to approach the initial contact you have with clients, and begin preparing for working with your first client. You’ll also look at local, regional, and ethical requirements for client confidentiality.

In this unit, you’ll look at the initial steps to becoming a doula – what your role entails, recognizing the benefits of birth doula support, building relationships, and getting ready to work with your first client. You’ll explore the history of birth support, examine a range of doula business models, consider how to approach the initial contact you have with clients, and begin preparing for working with your first client. You’ll also look at local, regional, and ethical requirements for client confidentiality.