Does being an RN give me advantage if i want to be a doula?

[SINGMAGGIE-RN]

I currently am an RN working in Ortho, but have done every MED-Surg thing out there for five years. The only problem is, is that I have only wanted to L/D since i got out of nursing school and have applied for many jobs with no luck.

Now i have a child and work part-time and want to quit and do doula stuff or work with a midwife and get certified with home births and wonder if I my RN degree sort of sets me up for less work in obtaining my doula cert? I have already ready many books on birth, been to several births and then givin birth once myself.

Any thoughts?

[RunBabyRN]

Here's a great website for you to do some research:

DONA International â€" Birth Doula Certification

[klone, MSN, RN]

Here's the deal...in most states, if you decide to become a DEM or CPM, you have to relinquish your nursing license.

Are there any CNMs in your state that attend homebirths? If so, I would try to connect with them and see if they're looking for an assistant. They will probably want someone who is NRP certified.

[IamSusan]

Honestly, if you want to know if being an RN is a handicap as a doula I would post the question on Mothering. But, seriously, Certified Nurse Midwives are the most educated midwives around and that's the safest route to becoming a midwife. If you become a CPM ( certified professional midwife) you will be limited to ONLY homebirths and your education won't be up to par with any other countries first world midwives. When they compare midwives to midwives in Europe the education is university level and far more similar to our CNMs. In fact a CPM isn't a degree at all, and would not be recognized in any other country. In hospitals, a doula with RN experience would likely be seen as a plus, as long as she stuck to her support person role. At home births, among the hard core natural crowd, people with an RN or seen as part of the medical establishment can be viewed with suspicion ( in the most extreme circles ) because they are seen as viewing birth as a disease rather than a natural process. Birth is a natural process with a lot of inherent risk. Not sure if that answers your question?

[nocturnalnurse]

doulas are not suppose to hold a medical role in birth so I would say having your RN would not necissarily help you. Some states will actually require you to uphold the highest standard of care for your highest level of certification. for example- you are a doula at a home birth with an RN license and something goes wrong...you best be prepared to step in as an RN and deal with the problem! The best doulas I have worked with know they are there for maternal support and don't step on the toes of medical staff (keeping in mind I work at a hospital, at a home birth that would likely be less of a problem). I actually quite enjoy working with them as it eases some of the pressure off myself to provide that role for the mother. as mentioned by Iamsusan, CNM is the way to go if you want to provide medical care for laboring women. avoid CPM imho.