What's the difference between a midwife and a doula?

Question

Has anyone used one or the other? Would you recommend it?

Answer 1

A midwife actually preforms medical care and catches babies. She does prenatal care and may even do well woman care.

A doula supports a laboring woman who is being attended by a doc of MW. A doula does not perform medical care. She explains medical procedures and such to you, advocates for your perferences with the staff, provides emotional and physcial support during labor, does massage for you, suggests ways dad could support you, suggests coping techniques for unmedicated births, etc.

I have used both. I had a doula for my first birth with a doctor. I think that they are especially helpful for a first time mom. My hubby says it was the best decision we made.

We had a midwife for our second.

We had a midwife and a doula for our third at home.

Midwives provide much more detailed and personalized care than a doctor. They spend much more time with you. You're usually lucky if an OB sees you for 10 mins at an appointment. A MW usually spends 30 mins to 2 hours with you! You don't feel like a number with a MW. A MW is very experienced with unmedicated birth and less likely to do interventions.

I would highly recommend using both a MW and a doula!

Answer 2

A doula is only a labor coach, they support you but they don't actually deliver your baby or perform any medical procedures. There's two different kinds of midwives. One that works under a doctor and that does their work in a hospital, and one that works alone and will deliver babies at home and only go to a hospital in an emergency. Both types of midwives are trained to perform all of the duties that a doctor would normal do, except for emergency type situations. Except that, unlike a doctor, they actually stay with you for the majority of the labor, birth, and the time after the birth. I have personally only had doctors, but I know women have have used midwives and really liked them. It all depends on you and the care you want to receive. I would only recommend a doula if you don't have a partner that will be a good support to you in labor, since that's all they do.

Answer 3

A doula is a child birth coach and a midwife is someone who can actually deliver the baby. If you want an unmediated birth an uninvolved third party might be helpful.

Answer 4

Well in the UK, ALL babies are delivered by Midwives! They are your first point of contact!!!

Midwives in the UK are highly medically trained and capable of dealing with all the needs of a pregnant and labouring woman and new mum - a doctor only needs to get involved if something "goes wrong" or high-tech medical intervention (epidural, induction, C section, forceps, special care for the baby etc) is needed.

Unless you are a high risk pregnancy, in the UK you won't get your prenatal care from an Obstetrician - you'll have all your prenatal exams etc with a Midwife - you might only see the Obstetrician once at the beginning of your pregnancy, or the midwife might refer you back to him/her if any problems arise. If you are having a straight forward pregnancy though, its midwives all the way.

Midwives are employed by the National Health Service and take care of you all through your pregnancy.

Doulas in the UK are independent - you have to pay them privately for their services (and they can charge about £600! Too expensive for us), and their main role is SUPPORT in labour. They are not medically trained and can't deliver your baby, they are there for support - the advantage I suppose of having them over your man or your mother or your friend is that they are generally very knowledgeable about childbirth and can support you emotionally through the whole thing. If you are giving birth in a hospital where the doctors are busy with other women and you are feeling scared and overwhelmed a doula could be helpful.

I'm having my first baby in the UK and have been treated by midwives right the way through my pregnancy. As my pregnancy is uncomplicated I am going to a midwife led unit to have my baby. The disadvantages are that you cannot have an epidural or a high tech delivery there and if you need emergency intervention you have to go to the hospital. But the advantages are that it is small, homely, warm, cosy (very un-hospital like! and if you've ever seen a British NHS hospital you'll know thats a good thing!) and you will be delivered by a midwife you know who will be at your side right the way through, encouraging and supporting you (basically doing all a doula does!), plus is medically trained to deal with problems or emergencies IF they arise.

Midwives are fantastic! Whenever I have a concern me or my fiance get on the phone to the birth centre and the midwife puts our minds at rest! They are so down to earth and matter of fact about childbirth - after all - they see it every day - it helps me not to panic about the delivery (which I am really scared of)!! I am going to feel so much safer being looked after by them in labour. Especially as I have got to know them all through my ante natal care and classes! These women know what they are on about! My community midwife has been delivering babies every day for over 25 years! Makes me feel very safe with her.

I haven't considered hiring a doula - to be honest they don't do anything my midwife won't do (plus they charge a lot which we can't afford at the moment!) and I've got fantastic support from my man who is going to be with me all the way and I know will be like a rock to me. A doula would be useful though I guess if you don't have a partner/relative/friend to support you, or in a hospital situation where you only have doctors to look after you (and its all very cold and impersonal) - as the doula can support you, hold your hand and talk to you and encourage you etc and help you get through it if you've decided to have a drug free birth or only use minimal drugs. But if you are being looked after by a midwife I don't think you need a doula as well.

BTW I don't know what country you're in, I guess you're in the USA? I know childbirth is a very different experience there (much more high tech and medicalised!) so I can only give you the UK side of things, sorry!

Answer 5

The word, "doula," comes from the Greek word for the most important female slave or servant in an ancient Greek household, the woman who probably helped the lady of the house through her childbearing. The word has come to refer to "a woman experienced in childbirth who provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to the mother before, during and just after childbirth." (Klaus, Kennell and Klaus, Mothering the Mother).

Midwifery is the term traditionally used to describe the art of assisting a woman through childbirth. In the modern context, this term is used to describe the activities of these health care providers who are experts in women's health care including giving prenatal care to expecting mothers. They attend the birth of the infant and provide postpartum care to the mother and her infant. Practitioners of midwifery are known as midwives, a term used in reference to both women and men (the term means "with woman").