Austin Doula Care
Code of Conduct

 

Last modified: 10/28/2025

As birth doulas, we provide emotional and physical support to the birthing person during labor and delivery. We can also facilitate communication with the staff to ensure that you have the information you need to make informed decisions regarding your baby’s birth. We can provide reassurance and perspective to you and your partner, make suggestions for labor progress, and help with relaxation, massage, positioning and other techniques for your comfort. We are independent and self-employed, and as such, are working for YOU, not your caregiver or place of birth.

With that in mind, we want to define the roles and expectations for clients, their families, and our doulas.

Birthing Parent Requirements and Obligations

Class Requirements

As your doulas, we require all first time parents to take a comprehensive childbirth class. This can be a private class or hospital-based class, that is your choice. When you are truly informed for birth, it helps us to best assist you. Your doula can provide you with a list of classes we recommend in the Austin area.
We also require families to take a breast/body feeding class if you are intending on breast/bodyfeed your baby. 

Birthing Parent Obligations

  • You agree to read and be familiar with the information that we provide for you, including information in your client portal.

  • Have a licensed medical provider (Doctor or Midwife) for prenatal and birth care as we do not attend "Free Births".

  • You will discuss your plans for your birth with your caregiver and doula(s), before labor.

  • You will call (not text) as soon as you think you may be in labor, even if you are not sure, so that we may make arrangements to be at your birth.

  • You will allow us up to 2 hours to reach you.

Respect and Safety

  • The client will maintain a safe environment in which all those in the home and/or birthing location conduct themselves in a civil, respectful, and cooperative manner. A safe home environment includes securing all firearms that the doula(s) and any children in the home cannot access. Disrespectful, intimidating, aggressive, or inappropriate behavior by the Client or their support people either in the home or birthing location or lack of firearms being secured will result in the doula’s immediate departure, contract termination, and forfeiture of all Client payments. Doulas are trained to notify the company immediately if inappropriate conduct arises.

  • Pets will be secured at all times during visits unless the doula says otherwise.

Supporting Partner Requirements  

All intended members of the birthing persons labor support team will have the opportunity to meet the doula(s) before the birth, with the goal to provide seamless care among the birth team.  It is imperative that partners and support people understand the role and limitations of doula support, and how the doula can support partners and/or other family members during the birth as well. All members of the support team are expected to follow the above Code of Conduct as well.

Doula Obligations

What we will do:

  • You will have access to your doula(s) from the time of hiring for advice, guidance, and resources throughout the pregnancy

  • We will provide birth plan information and consultation

  • We will provide evidence based information and resources to enable you to make informed decisions. 

  • We will provide non-judgemental support for each and every unique birthing process, whether your ideal birth includes medication, non-medicated, cesarean, or vaginal delivery.

What we will NOT do: 

  • We will not attend a birth without a licensed medical provider in attendance (OBGYN or Midwife)

  • We won’t make decisions for you and your family.

  • We won’t drive you to your birth location.

  • We won’t give medications or medical advice.

Accessibility:

  • We will provide unlimited email and phone/text support during business hours (9am-7pm) after the signing of our contract.

  • If you have a doula that shares call, they will let you know who the doula on call is when your labor begins.

  • Your doula(s) will be in town and available for you during the on-call period of 37 weeks to 42 weeks.

  • When you are in your on-call period, your doula will be available to you 24/7.

Labor & Birth:

  • If labor begins before 37 weeks, we will do our best to ensure your doula or another doula from our team can attend your birth. We can not guarantee a doula will be available. 

  • Once labor begins, we are available outside of business hours until we join you for your birth.

  • We will provide early labor support, usually via phone, and your doula will join you when you’re ready for in person support, either in home or in your birthing location. 

  • We will remain with you in labor until one to two hours after your baby is born. We will take short breaks for meals and rest if time allows. In the event that labor is extremely protracted, another doula from our network will come to bring in fresh support for you. We will discuss this with you before acting. 

  • We will draw on our knowledge and experience to provide emotional support, physical comfort, and to help you communicate with the medical staff. We can provide you with reassurance and perspective, make suggestions to help labor progress and help with relaxation, massage, positioning, and other non-medical techniques for comfort and coping.

  • We can work with your partner/support person(s) to help you navigate labor and birth

Newborn and Postpartum Support:

  • If breast/bodyfeeding, we will help you initiate that process.

  • If bottle feeding we will give guidance and support as you initiate that process.

  • After the birth of your baby, the doula that attended your birth will visit you at home or in the hospital, sometime in the first weeks you are home from your birthing location. They will answer any questions or give you referrals to an appropriate professional that can meet your needs.

  • We will maintain confidentiality of the details relating to your pregnancy and birth unless we have first obtained your consent, giving permission to share details. The exception to this is if we need to call in a back-up doula to serve you in some capacity. The back-up doula would also be bound to confidentiality. 

Postpartum Code of Conduct Obligations

As postpartum doulas, we offer two different shifts to fit your needs. Daytime shifts are in 4 hour increments and overnights are in 8 hour increments (*Unless otherwise arranged with your doula). During daytime postpartum shifts we can provide a variety of supportive tasks in the home to allow the new parents to rest and recover and we will also provide education and guidance on newborn care as needed. The following are examples of what a doula will and will not do.

Doulas Will:

  • Help with newborn care

  • Take care of newborn while parent(s) sleep or tend to self-care needs *(can include parent(s) leaving the house to attend doctor appointments/therapy, etc. if discussed with doula beforehand)

  • Aid with feeding plan (body or bottle) and/or pumping

  • Do light housekeeping/tidying (*can include some laundry, cooking or meal prep, dishes, helping with laundry, home or nursery organizing) *Daytime Shifts Only

  • Provide emotional, mental, and physical support. We are aware of signs of postpartum mood disorders and will give referrals as needed. 

  • Provide education and support with babywearing, swaddling, and other tools

  • Encourage sleep for parents and baby.

Doulas Will NOT Do:

  • Yard Work

  • Ironing

  • Scrubbing toilets or floors

  • Heavy Duty house work and/or deep cleaning or cleaning of appliances

  • Pet care, including scooping poop. (*Doula may take dog(s) for a walk at their discretion)

For overnight postpartum work, we will take care of the baby in a separate room from the sleeping parent(s), offer bodyfeeding/pumping support and/or will bottle feed the baby, change diapers, swaddle, and get the baby back to sleep. This helps the new parents get as much rest as possible.  Overnight shifts are to be done Sunday - Thursday unless other arrangements have been made with the doula.  We do not do "awake care" or household chores overnight, the doula will be resting when the baby is resting. We ask that you provide a soft place for the doula to be horizontal near the baby (couch with bassinet next to it or bed in nursery/guest room). The doula will bring their own pillow and blanket.

Respect and Safety

  • The client will maintain a safe environment in which all those in the home conduct themselves in a civil, respectful, and cooperative manner. A safe home environment includes securing all firearms that the doula(s) and any children in the home cannot access. Disrespectful, intimidating, aggressive, or inappropriate behavior by the Client or their support people either in the home or lack of firearms being secured will result in the doula’s immediate departure, contract termination, and forfeiture of all Client payments. Doulas are trained to notify the company immediately if inappropriate conduct arises.

  • All pets must be secured when doula is in the home at doula discretion.

  • All visitors/family members in the home when doula is present are expected to be respectful and civil and follow the above code of conduct.

Postpartum Shift rescheduling procedure and expectations

  • All postpartum shifts can be rescheduled for emergency medical situations at no charge. 

  • Doulas may need to reschedule shifts to attend births. They will let clients know as soon as possible when this will occur and offer a back up if one is available.

  • Any postpartum shifts rescheduled by clients less than 48 hours in advance (not medical reasons) will forfeit those hours and the doula will be paid for those scheduled hours. 

  • Shifts must be completed within the timeline initially set forth by doula and clients. 

  • In excess of 2 shifts rescheduled by clients for non-medical reasons will be charged an additional $50 rescheduling fee per shift.

Baby Sleep Support

We do not do "sleep training" or support a "cry it out" approach to newborn sleep. Unrealistic expectations about infants’ abilities to self-regulate and sleep longer, uninterrupted cycles, cause parental anxiety and more stress for the whole family. Newborn babies don’t self-comfort in isolation when left to cry alone, they learn to shut down in the face of overwhelming distress. They may stop growing, stop feeding and stop trusting. Responsive care is what’s needed for all infants at least for the first year. This means meeting the baby’s needs before they get stressed. We will foster a restful and safe sleep environment for the baby, responding to the baby’s needs overnight and normalize newborn sleep patterns for new parents. 

ADC may modify or update its Code of Conduct from time to time. When ADC changes these terms in a material manner, we will update the ‘last modified’ date at the [top of this page]. Your continued use of ADC Services after any such change constitutes your acceptance of the new code of conduct expectations.