Doulas accompany women in labor to help ensure a safe and satisfying birth experience.

Your doula will draw on her knowledge and experience to provide emotional support, physical comfort and the information you need to make informed decisions as they arise in labor.

Your doula is independent and self-employed. She works for you, not for your caregiver or hospital.

Doula support with The Crunchy-ish Doula includes two prenatal appointments (at clients home), birth/labor support, and two postpartum appointments.

When you are in labor: Your doula should be called when you think you are in labor or as soon as your bag of waters has released, even if you do not yet need her.

You and your doula will decide together if she should come right away.

Your doula will almost always be with you within 1 hour from when you ask her to come. In the event of a scheduled induction, your doula will not come until you call her, unless a time is agreed upon prior to the start of the induction.

She may be able to answer questions and offer some support by phone until she arrives.

Except for extraordinary circumstances, your doula will remain with you throughout labor and birth.

After the birth: Your doula will remain with you for about one hour after the birth, until or unless you and your family are ready for quiet time together.

Long or short labor: You and your doula are both hoping that you will have a quick and easy birth. If you are lucky enough to have a very short labor, everyone “wins,” and if you have a very long labor, your doula will remain with you throughout your labor, providing professional support, no matter how long you need it. If your labor is short or long, the cost of services is the same.

Your doula does NOT:

Perform clinical tasks, such as blood pressure, fetal heart checks, or any procedure that falls under the legal definition of practicing medicine.

Provide medical advice.

Make decisions for you. She will help you get the information necessary to make an informed decision and will remind you if there is a departure from your previously stated intentions during birth.

Speak to the staff on your behalf. She will discuss your concerns with you and suggest options, but you or your partner will speak on your own behalf to the clinical staff.

Backup:

Your doula will inform you of times when she is unavailable for labor support and will arrange for a backup doula.

Backup doulas may or may not provide additional services, such as postpartum visits, but will provide doula support throughout labor and birth.

Your doula will arrange payment with any backup doula, you will not need to pay your backup doula.

Waiver of liability:

As a condition of my performance of services under this agreement, you expressly understand that, as a doula, your doula is not a medical professional and therefore cannot and will not provide you with medical care or advice.

Photography/Videography Request and Release:

Your doula is available to take pictures and video for your record, only as time allows.

Your doula will make the birth doula support a primary responsibility and therefore cannot guarantee any photos or videos will be taken.

By selecting and initialing the following response, you will give your doula permission to record and/or distribute photographs and/or videos from your birth.

This agreement is entered today

between Mallory Villafuerte (Doula) and

due date of

You would like your doula to:

Disclosure of Communicable Diseases:

You agree to disclose any communicable diseases that you have so that your doula can take appropriate precautions.

Legal Disputes:

We agree, in the unlikely event that a dispute should occur between us, that all disputes shall be resolved within Gregg County and that, except as otherwise indicated below the parties to this agreement are not entitled to and shall not receive attorneys’ fees and/or expenses arising from any such dispute.

If your doula is required to respond to a subpoena of her records relating to services, you agree to reimburse the doula for her time and all expenses incurred in responding to any such demand, including, but not limited to, loss of earnings, appearing at depositions or hearings, or retaining an attorney.

Refund Policy:

Fees are non-refundable unless an unforeseeable emergency on your doula's part prevents them and their backup from attending the birth, in which case 50% of the agreed upon price can be returned to you.

If your doula is not present at your birth because you failed to call her or give her adequate notice, she will not provide a refund.

This includes precipitous labors, scheduled inductions, surgical births, or hospital transfers from a home or birth center birth.

If the fee has not been paid in full three weeks before your estimated date of delivery, your doula is not obligated to be present at the birth.

She and your backup doula cannot go on call for your EDD until payment is complete.

Before you sign this agreement, check with your hospital to see what the policies are for attendance of doulas in labor and delivery, including cesareans.

If your provider will not allow a doula to attend your birth, and this information is not discovered until after 37 weeks, I will not provide a refund.

Your doula attends cesarean births as long as your chosen hospital and care provider will allow it.

To reserve your doula’s services for the Estimated Due Date of

a minimum of $300 down payment is due along with a signed copy of this letter of agreement. Any remaining balance is due by (37 weeks/3weeks prior to your EDD).

I have read and understand this letter describing the doula’s services and agree to its terms.

I consent to the release of this and all other information pertaining to me to the backup doula for my birth.

Contact Information

The Crunchy-ish Doula 

Mallory Villafuerte

903-801-0105

Mallorybvillafuerte@gmail.com