What is an Advanced-Trained Doula?
- Magdalena Hunsaker
- Sep 8
- 1 min read
An Advance-Trained Doula (sometimes called a monitrice) is someone who is professionally trained to provide some clinical skills to a laboring woman. When you hire an Advanced-Trained Doula, you have the peace of mind of staying home longer before moving to the hospital, or while awaiting the midwife. An Advanced-Trained Doula monitors fetal heart tones and blood pressure, and can check cervical dilation, effacement, and station.
Whether or not I perform these tasks, and what to do with the information, is entirely up to you.
Does this mean I will deliver your baby?
No. While most doulas are trained in the most basic emergency childbirth preparation, and indeed do end up catching their fair share of babies before the midwife arrives or you can get to the hospital, delivery of the baby is outside a doula’s scope of practice.
I do not carry the necessary equipment to handle an emergency and I am not registered as a midwife in Colorado. I will not be as familiar with your medical history as your primary caregiver.
It is your responsibility to arrange for primary care, and to communicate clearly with your primary caregiver so that they can do their best to attend your birth.
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