Improving Knowledge and Competency in Gender-Affirming Patient Care Among New Nurses in Sexual and Reproductive Health Care.

Objective: To improve knowledge and competency in providing gender-affirming patient care among newly licensed registered nurses (RNs) working in sexual and reproductive health (SRH).

Design: Pilot, pretest/posttest, descriptive design.

Setting And Participants: Participating RNs were employed at a large academic health center in the southeastern United States.

Bridging Health Disparities and Improving Reproductive Outcomes With Health Center-Affiliated Doula Programs.

Doulas are community perinatal professionals trained in pregnancy health, childbirth preparation, labor support, lactation counseling, and postnatal care. Doulas serve as patient advocates and provide laboring patients with continuous one-to-one support including informational, physical, and emotional support. Research shows that access to continuous labor support contributes to positive health outcomes such as increasing rates of spontaneous vaginal delivery, shorter labor, less need for analgesics, and increased satisfaction with the birthing process.

Innovation in Practice: Preparing Doulas to Support Cesarean Births.

Despite growing initiatives to support patient-centered labor and birth care, implementation of this care in the operating room is still limited. Doulas can be utilized in the operating room to facilitate evidence-based practices such as skin-to-skin contact for patients and newborns during cesarean birth. This article evaluates a curriculum and training method that was developed to educate doulas to provide safe and effective care during the cesarean birth experience.

Evidence and guidelines for trauma-informed doula care.

Objective: Trauma and trauma-related health conditions are common during pregnancy, but there is little evidence and guidance on how doulas (trained lay birth assistants) can provide trauma-informed care. The purpose of this narrative review is to critique and synthesize the existing evidence for trauma-informed doula care and to offer guidelines for practice.

Design: We conducted a narrative review of existing evidence in the peer-reviewed and gray literatures on trauma-informed care in maternity and perinatal settings including doula training curricula and community-based doula guidelines on trauma-informed doula care.

Evaluation of an Innovative, Hospital-Based Volunteer Doula Program.

Objective: To evaluate program growth, doula characteristics, patient satisfaction, and characteristics and perceptions of labor and delivery nurses who work with volunteer doulas in a hospital-based volunteer doula program.

Design: Descriptive quantitative.

Setting: An academic health center in the southeastern United States with approximately 4,000 births per year.

Volunteer doulas' experiences supporting cesarean births: A qualitative analysis for preliminary program evaluation.

Background: Cesarean birth is common in the United States and associated with increased incidence of medical complications and maternal dissatisfaction. Doula support is associated with improved maternal and newborn outcomes but is often restricted to vaginal birth. The aim of this scoping study was to explore the experiences of volunteer doulas who provide support to women during cesarean birth.

Doulas in the Operating Room: An Innovative Approach to Supporting Skin-to-Skin Care During Cesarean Birth.

Introduction: Skin-to-skin care (SSC) immediately after birth is recommended for all women and their newborns. Barriers to SSC after cesarean birth lead to delays in initiation of this practice. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to implement an innovative approach with volunteer doulas to support initiation of SSC after cesarean for all clients.