Birthworker Professional Development

Open Arms is deeply committed to nurturing the potential of all birthworkers, especially those within communities that are most impacted by racial inequity and health disparities. We connect prospective birthworkers from Black, Indigenous, Latine, and other communities of color to scholarships for trainings, as well as offer our own, free of cost. 

Increasing Access to Community Care

Open Arms trains local community members to serve their own communities as care specialists in doula support, lactation, and childbirth education. In 2022, we partnered with Shafia Monroe Consulting to train seven BIPOC doulas and in 2022, we provided free Childbirth Educator training to Washington State residents.

Stay up-to-date with upcoming training opportunities by checking our Careers & Volunteering page for announcements.

Open Arms hires certified and trained birth doulas and contracts a core team who manage either a full- or part-time client caseload. If you are interested in becoming a doula with us, the first step is to complete a birth doula training program such as Shafia Monroe Consulting (SMC) Full Circle Doula Training or the Simkin Center for Allied Birth Professions. For more details about being an Open Arms Doula, please watch this informational hiring session.

Community Doula List

As spots open up on the Doula Services team, we consult our Community Doula List to fill the space. We refer people to this list when they do not qualify for our services or when our caseload is full.

Interested in joining the Community Doula List? Fill out our form.

Join the Community Doula List

Being an Open Arms doula, I am able to develop trusting relationships with pregnant and birthing people in genuine, loving, and authentic ways. Through this connection, I can support them with accessing health care and having the birth experience they want to have in way they may not have otherwise. I love that this relationship is so mutually rewarding: I love learning and growing with my client, and knowing, so fundamentally, that I was able to support them during a crucial and formative experience.