What is the difference between a midwife and a doula?
What is the benefit of hiring a midwife over a doula? For some women there may be no additional benefit; it depends on the type of support you are looking for. To try and explain the different between the two: the main difference is that a midwife is a trained professional who is registered to provide hands-on clinical support during pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period.
Midwifery is a regulated profession, which means we are required to provide a certain standard of care which can be assessed at a central level. The services of a midwife include emotional as well as physical support; we are trained to “attend” women in labour and undertake annual training to respond to childbirth emergencies.
On the other hand, a doula provides emotional support, and guidance in navigating maternity care, but isn't trained to provide hands-on clinical care or to deal with emergencies. During birth a doula would be able to support you to manage any pain, lean in to your intuition and to advocate for you, but they wouldn't be able to provide medical care, make clinical assessments and care plans, or to act as a midwife in an emergency. Essentially midwives are medical professionals and doulas are focused on wellbeing, comfort and advocacy.
Some women employ doulas to support them alongside midwifery care, and some women hire only a doula in the case where they don't plan to access clinical care. Doulas may do two or more antenatal appointments and attend your birth and provide some postnatal support. In comparison, midwives offer a pregnancy-long schedule of appointments which focus on your clinical and emotional wellbeing and that of your baby, we can offer to monitor you for pregnancy related conditions, monitor your baby's growth, liaise with hospitals if wanted/needed, attend your birth and provide more intensive postnatal support.
Many doulas undertake additional training and provide services that include birth photography, pregnancy massage, placenta encapsulation/remedies and breastfeeding peer support. Their support can be invaluable in many ways, and because they don’t provide clinical care, they can develop extensive holistic knowledge and understanding through observation of birth.
If you are looking for emotional and holistic support during pregnancy and birth, a doula is a great option. If you are also looking for someone who can provide clinical care, care planning and is trained in managing childbirth emergencies, then an independent midwife might be right for you.
