Birth Doulas and Shelter Advocates: Creating Partnerships and Building Capacity

Pregnant women's experiences and needs for emotional support, physical well-being, access to healthcare and other community-based services are significantly different from women who are not pregnant. For pregnant women also dealing with past or current domestic violence and currently residing in a domestic violence shelter or safe house, the multitude of experiences and needs may be even greater. The goal of this Technical Assistance Guidance is to provide information for both victim advocates working in shelter and birth doulas on the impact of trauma in pregnancy and childbirth, and to outline how a partnership between these two communities may be of benefit to pregnant survivors of domestic violence. A listing of educational resources, model programs, handouts and links to online networks to learn more about supporting pregnant survivors of abuse are included.