Two prenatal visits, two hours in length each to get to know your chosen doula. Topics covered during these visits may include:
creating a birth and/or postpartum plan
strategies for achieving your birth and postpartum goals
comfort measures and pain coping for labour and how your doula can best support you
information on common tests and procedures during pregnancy, birth and postpartum
infant feeding (breast/chest feeding, as well as pumping, bottle feeding, formula feeding, etc)
prenatal colostrum collection
how to set up your home for postpartum success, and more!
Optional: unlimited additional prenatal meetings. Availability is dependent on your needs and your doula’s availability. Additional prenatal meeting time is invoiced at $40/hour (minimum booking of one hour).
Unlimited phone and email support from your doula from the time she’s hired.
Access to our lending library.
Membership in our private Facebook group The Five Elements Birth Services Village.
Invitation to our monthly Postpartum Circle for new parents and babies, fostering community connection and ongoing support during the early stages of parenthood.
On call coverage from the time we’re hired. While rare, if your doula is unavailable at the time you go into labor (reasons may include, but are not limited to: illness, another client in labor, etc), we’ll arrange for back up doula support. This may be another Five Elements Birth Services doula or a doula from our carefully selected and vetted Back Up Doula Collective.
Your doula will meet you at your home, the birth center, or hospital within two hours of receiving a request for support. Once active labor has begun, continuous support will be provided until up to two hours after the birth.
Your doula will strive to maintain an environment supportive to your labor process, provide physical comfort measures and emotional support during labor, as well as facilitate conversations with your medical care team to help you receive the information you need to make informed decisions about your medical care before and during your labor.
Your doula will help with initial latch and breast/chest feeding and/or alternative feeding methods (e.g. hand expression and syringe feeding of colostrum) following the birth, depending on yours and your newborn’s preferences and needs.
Your doula will schedule three postpartum support visits, three hours in length each (please see Scheduling Policy below for more information). Support provided during these visits are tailored to you and can include:
hands on support and information on newborn care (ie diapering, bathing, soothing, umbilical cord care, etc)
infant feeding support and information
light housework (ie meal prep, laundry, dishes, sterilizing pump and bottle parts, tidying, running errands, grocery shopping, etc)
providing nutritious snacks/drinks
caring for older siblings
support and information on sibling adjustment
caring for baby and older children while parents nap, eat, shower, etc
emotional support for the postpartum transition period including information on self-care, referrals to applicable community resources, tips for adjusting to parenthood, and more.
Optional: ongoing support after you’ve completed your three postpartum support visits. Availability is dependent on your needs and your doula’s availability. Additional postpartum support hours are invoiced at $40/hour (minimum booking of three hours).
Your doula cannot transport anyone to or from the birthing location, appointments, meetings, or other activities. Optionally, they may accompany you in your vehicle to these things. Any additional costs this may incur will be your responsibility (example: Uber fee for your doula to return to their vehicle after baby’s birth).
Your doula cannot perform clinical tasks, such as monitoring blood pressure, checking fetal heart tones, vaginal exams, etc.
Your doula cannot diagnose any medical conditions or dispense any medications (over the counter or prescribed) for any family member.
Your doula does not give medical advice. Any discussions that take place during prenatal visits, your labour, or postpartum are informational only and should not be viewed, or taken, as medical advice. Ultimately, all medical concerns and questions should be discussed with your medical care provider.
Your doula is not able to make medical decisions on your behalf. When a medical treatment/procedure is recommended, your doula can discuss any concerns you may have with you, suggest further questions you may want to ask your care provider, inform you of other potential options to discuss with your care provider, etc, but you and/or your partner/designated support person (if you’re incapacitated) are responsible for making medical decisions.
Your doula cannot guarantee a particular type of birth, postpartum, or outcome.
Your doula cannot take over major housecleaning tasks (examples include, but are not limited to: washing windows, yard work, deep cleaning bathrooms, etc).
Prenatal visits are booked through your doula’s online booking. This link will be provided to you in your Welcome! email after booking.
In the event that you or anyone in your home has tested positive for COVID, is under isolation, and/or is experiencing any symptoms of illness, in-person visits may be completed online or can be rescheduled for once everyone is well. As always, you will still have access to your doula through phone, text, or video call, as needed.
Your doula will schedule your postpartum support visits with you based on your needs and their availability. Your postpartum doula will discuss their standard availability and booking procedure with you. Please note that requests for support with less than 48 hours notice or for a specific, non-negotiable time may require a back up doula if your doula is unavailable.
If you need to cancel a scheduled postpartum visit, please provide 24 hours notice. Any cancellation made less than 24 hours in advance will be deducted from your included package visits or be invoiced in full (if you’ve already completed your included visits).
All postpartum visits included in your package must be completed by three weeks postpartum. Unused postpartum visits will be paid forward to families in need. Your doula will discuss how best to make use of these visits around other support you may have from family and friends.
Additional postpartum support visits above and beyond those included in your package may be scheduled up to six weeks postpartum. Postpartum support beyond six weeks may be discussed with your doula on an as needed basis. Your doula may also discuss other options (such as a nanny or parent’s helper) with you at this time, which may be better suited to your needs going forward.
In the event that your doula is unable to attend a scheduled meeting or support visit due to unforeseen circumstances (examples include, but are not limited to: illness, attending another client’s birth, personal emergency, etc), your doula will contact you as soon as possible to make other arrangements. These may include, but are not limited to: rescheduling the visit, arranging for a back up doula (if needed), etc.
For invoicing purposes, your doula’s billable time for postpartum support visits is considered to begin when they arrive at your home or, in the event that they’re running errands for you on the way to your home, upon arrival at the first stop. Their billable time is considered to end when they leave your home at the end of the scheduled visit or, in the event that they’re running errands for you on their way home, upon leaving the final stop. Please note: expenses incurred from errands, such as grocery shopping, are reimbursable. An invoice and a copy of all receipts will be provided to you for your records. The invoice for reimbursable expenses is due upon receipt.
From time to time, your doula takes scheduled time off. Dates off that may affect your support will be communicated to you in a timely fashion. Whenever possible, meetings and support visits will be scheduled around these dates or back up doula support will be arranged.
Should you choose to terminate services prior to 25 weeks gestation, fees paid will be refunded, minus $160 administration fee, minus $80.00 per completed prenatal meeting
Should you choose to terminate services after 25 weeks gestation or after the birth of your baby (whichever comes first), Five Elements Birth Services will retain the full fee.
If Five Elements Birth Services terminates services at any point, fees paid will be refunded, minus $160.00 administration fee, minus $80.00 per completed prenatal meeting.
If your doula is no longer able to complete their duties and responsibilities as outlined in this agreement (examples include, but are not limited to: unforeseen medical diagnoses/complications, personal or family emergencies, etc), Five Elements Birth Services will arrange for another doula to support you. Five Elements Birth Services will retain the full fee.
If your doula is unable to attend your labor due to unforeseen circumstances outside of their control (examples include, but are not limited to: rapid labor, choosing not to have your doula attend your birth, natural disasters or weather conditions that make it unsafe to reach you, policy restrictions on number of support people, illness, etc) Five Elements Birth Services will retain the full fee. Whenever possible, virtual doula services by phone, text, or video call will be provided instead.
If your doula fails to attend your labor and birth due to their error, without making appropriate arrangements to provide back up doula support, $480.00 will be refunded. Postpartum visits will still be provided as outlined in this agreement.
In the case of an unscheduled or emergency cesarean birth after a period of labor, Five Elements Birth Services will retain the full fee.
In the case of a scheduled cesarean birth, Five Elements Birth Services will retain the full fee. Doula services will be provided as outlined in this agreement, to the best of your doula's ability within the limitations of the hospital's policies (examples include, but are not limited to: only one support person being allowed into the operating room, no extra personnel in the recovery room, etc). These limitations vary from hospital to hospital and provider to provider. Your doula will discuss your specific situation with you and tailor their support to your needs.
Please note that while all Five Elements Birth Services doulas fully support your right to choose to birth unassisted (ie without the presence of a registered attendant such as a midwife or doctor), we’re not able to provide doula support for unassisted births. We can provide referrals to doulas who are able to provide support for unassisted births if that is your preference.
In the event that birth is imminent and a registered attendant (midwife or doctor) is not present, all Five Elements Birth Services doulas reserve the right to dial 911.
The fee for the services described above is $1,550.00 + GST. You may pay in full or five monthly payments of $310.00 + GST.
By submitting payment below, you are agreeing that you are 18 years or older and have read, understood, and agree to the terms outlined above.
