Our Education Philosophy

Midwifery education is an opportunity for personal growth and the strengthening of clinical skills, interpersonal skills, and self-reflection alongside the guidance of professionals with diverse experience and interests. It is a unique process that belongs to each student.

We offer individualized options to MEAC-enrolled student midwives given their desired level of participation, availability, academic program, future career desires, and midwifery and medical experience previous to their placement with us. We strive to nurture experts in normal, healthy birth. Our students work in collaboration with Licensed Midwives, Midwife Assistants, Doulas, and administrative staff to broaden their learning while providing excellent healthcare to families. Students with Welcome Home Midwifery Services, Inc. educate, advise and support childbearing families while facilitating a safe, healthy pregnancy and birth under the supervision of Licensed Midwives. 
                    
As an education organization, is our responsibility to provide excellence in a student midwife’s care and training, and sensitivity to their needs as future caregivers and healers. We expect and encourage students to communicate with us and be leaders in decision-making regarding their training and the care they provide. We acknowledge the value of both didactic and experiential learning, and are flexible to each student’s learning style. We will listen to our students, and treat them with respect, dignity, and compensation for the work they do with WHMS in order to create a sustainable workforce of skilled and kind midwives.

WHMS Apprentice Program

Welcome Home Doula Services instituted an Apprentice Doula Program in February 2011, with the goal of training aspiring doulas, providing educational outreach in local communities, and offering services to people who would otherwise likely be unable to access doula support. From 2011 to 2018, the program trained over 20 doulas and provided community doula services to hundreds of families.

In 2018, Welcome Home Doula Services participated in a corporate merger with Welcome Home Midwifery Services with the goal of streamlining midwifery and doula education in the Sacramento region while prioritizing education and healthcare for individuals from marginalized backgrounds.

The Apprentice Program now has two branches for individuals seeking guidance and mentorship on their path to a childbirth profession.

Apprentice Program: Future Doulas

Apprentice Program: Future Midwives
The Future Doulas branch of the Apprentice Program begins with an 8-week classroom training which includes information about the following:
  • Anatomy and Physiology of Pregnancy and Birth for Doulas
  • Nutrition and Activity Counseling for Doulas
  • Comfort Measures for Pregnancy, Birth, and Postpartum
  • Informed Consent & Communication for Doulas
  • Professionalism for Doulas
  • Lactation Management for Doulas
  • Cultural Humility and Health Disparities

Following the 8-week training, Apprentice Doulas attend at least 3 client cases (including 2 prenatal visits, the labor and birth, and 2 postpartum visits for each client) with a Mentor Doula from our organization. When our Apprentice Doulas have attended 3 mentored births, they will begin to receive referrals for births through our organization. A minimum of 6 client cases in full must be completed for graduation from the program. Participants in the Future Doulas branch of the Apprentice Program also receive individualized mentoring regarding complex cases and doula business management.
The Future Midwives branch of the Apprentice Programs also begins with an 8-week classroom training. This training is focused on bringing to our apprentices the clinical skills necessary for safely assisting at out-of-hospital births, and fulfills the legal requirement for Midwife Assistants at Welcome Home Midwifery Services. Topics covered in this intensive classroom training include:
  • Medical Terminology for Midwife Assistants
  • Information Collection and Documentation for Midwife Assistants
  • Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers
  • Neonatal Resuscitation for Out-of-Hospital Providers
  • Medication Administration for Out-of-Hospital Birth
  • Venipuncture for Midwife Assistants
  • Equipment Setup for Out-of-Hospital Birth
  • Immediate Newborn Care for Midwife Assistants
  • Immediate Postpartum Care for Midwife Assistants
  • Fetal Heart Auscultation for Midwife Assistants
  • Specimen Collection for Midwife Assistants
  • Emergency Skills for Out-of-Hospital Birth
  • Transfers of Care

Following the 8-week training, Apprentice Midwives attend at least 6 client cases (including 2 prenatal visits, the labor and birth, and 2 postpartum visits for each client) with one or more Licensed Midwives through the program year. If enrolled in a MEAC-accredited midwifery school, the Apprentices also have the opportunity to have some of their clinical skills and experiences tested and signed off at this time. Participants in the Future Midwife branch of the Apprentice Program also receive individualized mentoring regarding enrollment in midwifery school, pathways to midwifery licensure, and emotional support on their path to midwifery certification.
Applications for the 2018 Cohort are closed.

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