Prenatal Clinic vs. Doula - Which volunteer position should I choose?

[PinkRose34, MSN, RN]

I'm currently working on a med/surg unit and looking into L&D. I'm looking at places to volunteer at. I have 2 options, but I can only pick one because I work full time (12 hr, 0.9 FTE) and just started a family. Here are the 2 options:

Option 1: Non-Profit Prenatal Clinic 

1. Commitment - 1 year
2. Hours - 3 hours every other week (or every week)
3. Distance from home - 10 mins
4. tasks - pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, charting, guiding young women in times of crisis (ie those who are considering abortion). may also assist with breastfeeding classes and outreach programs.

Option 2: Doula Program at a Hospital Birthing Center

1. Commitment - 2 years
2. Hours - 6 hours every other week
3. Distance from home - 30 mins
4. I will be volunteering as a Doula and assist Mom with the birth.

Which option would be better for me if my end goal is to get into L&D/Postpartum one day? Would the second option negatively affect my home life at all (being that it's further and requires more of my time)?

I appreciate any input you can give me, thank you.

[LibraSunCNM, BSN, MSN, CNM]

Guiding young women considering abortion, meaning convincing them NOT to get an abortion?

[PinkRose34, MSN, RN]

11 minutes ago, LibraSunCNM said:

Guiding young women considering abortion, meaning convincing them NOT to get an abortion?

Yes I’m sorry I wasn’t clear. The clinic teaches women about the risks of abortion and have them consider alternatives such as adoption. They’re pro-life

[LibraSunCNM, BSN, MSN, CNM]

2 hours ago, PinkRose34 said:

Yes I’m sorry I wasn’t clear. The clinic teaches women about the risks of abortion and have them consider alternatives such as adoption. They’re pro-life

Well, that's a hard pass from me then, because I think those places are despicable.

Doula training would be great experience, it just depends on the culture of the L&D unit where you apply as to whether they'd think it's an asset.  There are certainly many units that have such a medicalized culture that they would roll their eyes at it.

[Ohm108, MSN, NP, CNM]

I worked as a doula prior to nursing school and I enjoyed it.  I would pick this experience over the prenatal clinic.  If your ultimate goal is to become an L&D nurse, charting and breastfeeding support will be part of your floor training.  Depending on your birth center and how much they allow a volunteer doula to provide support, it is a great way to learn about physiological birth and how to support an individual through the process.

I echo LibraSunCNM and caveat this by saying that it depends on your unit and whether they think doula training is an asset.  I have worked with a few L&D nurses that went and also took a Spinning Baby's class and they were wonderful to work with as a provider since they were always trying to help change the laboring person's positions to help facilitate labor progression.

[PinkRose34, MSN, RN]

Awesome, thank you both for responding, I really appreciate it. I was really leaning towards the Doula program because it's closer to where I'd like to go, and I don't think the clinic will help me get there as much. I have an interview for the Doula Program in a few days, I hope I get it. 

[klone, MSN, RN]

Bummer about the clinic, because I think that would be a fantastic experience. But like Libra, I loathe "crisis pregnancy centers" so there is no way I would go there.

[HopefulAutumn16, BSN, RN]

Hi! I’ve worked as a doula for some years prior to becoming a nurse, but also a midwife assistant at both a birth center and with a private practice midwife. The clinic option sounds good *only* because you have more hands on clinical experience, but the actual clinic itself is, well. If you would like a good balance of clinical experience and getting hands on with the patient, consider finding a midwife or free standing birthing center you can volunteer for. You’ll be able to effectively do both clinical work, but also work hands on with patients and learn so much. I’m not sure if that was helpful advice, but good luck to you! 

[NurseGuru]

My strongest recommendation is the first option. 

You don't want to burn yourself out before getting to L&D. There will always be plenty of time to work on your bedside skills during the birthing process.  Being a doula can be super taxing on you physically, and emotionally. If you are OK with coming home tired then go for it.

The most important thing- as a doula you have to be focused on the mom. Nothing else. You can't stop to go talk to the nurse or look through charts and try to learn as often as you may think. If they're working through pain, all your energy is on helping them breathe or feel comfortable- but these are things you can easily learn later on because this takes time/experience every person is different. The nurses will also appreciate if you did not interfere with their duties - they may be too busy to teach you anything. I experienced this at one point I thought they were dismissive but that wasn't the case at all they were super nice outside of the clinical area. Not saying this is a 24/7 thing, but alot of times they are pretty focused on the safety aspects of different stages in labor can become dangerous so they may not be as social. 

The nice thing is that you do have foundational experience, but the tempo for L&D is very different. 

Working in the prenatal clinic will give you the benefit of learning about pregnancy itself- breastfeeding/ ultrasounds/ understanding labs and charts. It is always nice to learn what is normal before you get into critical/ abnormal. If L&D is something you want to do later on, then clinic is nice to start with. I think getting exposure for L&D -just do a few shifts shadowing or observing if you can and that is plenty you don't have to spend 2 years being a doula before going into L&D.