DENVER — A new law in Colorado is making that doula services easier for many women to access. In July, a new law went into effect that allows doula services to be covered under Medicaid.
For new moms, giving birth can be beautiful, terrible or even scary for some. But many find having doula by their side during labor to advocate can make a big difference.
Some hospitals, like Denver Health, have had a doula program in place for years and is always in high demand.
With this new law, the hospital is already helping more women to easily access this care.
Inside one of Denver Health's patient rooms, there's a sense of calm. It's hard to tell that this patient will soon become a mother.
The soothing atmosphere was carefully created by her doula, Michele Shazier Caldwell.
"How's your back feeling? Are you having any back pain?" Shazier Caldwell asked her patient.
Shazier Caldwell has been a doula with Denver Health for three years. She got started because she wasn't quite ready to retire and immediately fell in love with offering this care.
"I like it here because they take care of everybody. You know, no person is too small," Shazier Caldwell said.
It's the work she's seen that's made a big difference for women in labor.
"We help with pain management and emotional support," Shazier Caldwell said. "I tell all my patients I have a lot of love to give. I call myself the love doula."
"Doulas have been around since the dawn of time," said Phoebe Montgomery, a certified nurse midwife and OBGYN nurse practitioner. Montgomery is also the founder and director of the Denver Health Doula Program. "Particularly in the United States, the history of that stems from midwives and doulas supporting patients who were enslaved in the African American community. And then, when birth moved into the hospital and became more medicalized, those positions and roles weren’t really valued or respected.”
"It’s taken a lot of time for midwives to be allowed in hospitals and to be a respected provider in hospitals. And now, there’s a lot of movement toward appreciating how a doula can support a patient and provide better outcomes as well," Montgomery said.
Doulas are not medical professionals, but they are trained to support a woman's physical, emotional and mental health during her pregnancy and labor. Through that care, they've been proven to reduce epidural use, C-section rates and premature deliveries. Montgomery said that's needed.
"A lot of the times, especially at Denver Health, we're really busy. We deliver one in three babies that are born in Denver annually. So there's not a lot of opportunity to spend that quality one-on-one time with patients and so a doula can provide that continuous care that's really just focused on improving the experience," Montgomery said.
Now, thanks to the new Colorado law, doula services are covered under Medicaid.
"I think it's wonderful. I think every laboring woman needs a doula," Shazier Caldwell said.
For Denver Health, that's 80% of the patients in labor they see.
"I think that the Medicaid reimbursement is significantly increasing access to doula services exactly for the population that needs it," Montgomery said. "I think it’s great if somebody has those resources to hire a doula themselves. But, finances or awareness of what a doula is has historically been a huge barrier to doula services. And so, you know bringing this in is exactly what we need to expand and to help our patients.”
"Just massaging them and even I think when I don't speak their language, my tone [and] my presence, it just helps them," Shazier Caldwell said.
Shazier Caldwell said this work is important and she's grateful she can help.
"It's wonderful," Shazier Caldwell said. "It's my happy place in life."
Prior to this law, the Denver Health Doula Program was entirely volunteer-based. With this new Medicaid coverage, all 23 volunteers were able to be hired on as doulas. Montgomery hopes to see that number grow.
“I think that we could probably use 60 doulas ultimately. There’s a huge need," Montgomery said. "There’s a need at Denver Health for more than one doula on at a time most days. And currently, that’s where we will hopefully get someday.”