Lay Voluntary Doula Caring for the Childbearing Woman and Her Partner

Abstract

This study describes and illuminates voluntary lay doula caring during childbearing for the woman and her partner. The theoretical perspective is based on Eriksson's theory of caritative caring. Latent qualitative content analysis was chosen using semistructured interviews with a purposive sample of nine voluntary unpaid lay doulas in a Nordic nongovernmental organization. Caring as incubating, messaging, alleviating, and enabling offers a new understanding of doula care as tailored continuous caring to benefit the birth experience of both parents. This core of caring might also provide a mutual basis for collaboration between voluntary doula care and professional midwifery care.