Postpartum Support Session – Terms and Conditions
Explanation of Basic Services
As postpartum doulas, we provide non-medical physical, emotional, educational, and family support after the birth of your baby/ies. Our postpartum doula services provide in-home education, physical and emotional support during the transition to parenthood. We may assist with self-care for recovery from birth including postpartum comfort measures, support parent-baby bonding and secure attachment, and provide respite care, support, and education about newborn and infant development, care, feeding, and normal sleep.
Services include support for emotional adjustment following birth, including tools for self-care and screening and referrals for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Services may include coaching and practical help to support physical and emotional recovery from unexpected outcomes and/or traumatic birth experiences. Services may also include light household support including, but not limited to, meal preparation and help with laundry for baby and/or parents.
Our doulas will make appropriate referrals for parent/family needs that fall outside their scope of practice. We share the belief that parents are the experts of their children and we provide non-judgmental support and care for parents so they may provide optimal care for their children and family.
As a team, our doulas have a large resource list at their disposal and may offer you suggestions and materials that you may find useful. Silicon Valley Doulas maintains a curated collection of books and videos that are available for clients, upon request, to view during postpartum sessions and my be available to borrow through our lending library.
Due to the unpredictability and the on-call nature of doula care, we may need to reschedule one or more sessions with or without advance notice, or abruptly end a session before it’s scheduled end time. In the event that a session must be rescheduled, you will be notified via phone, text, or email and you will receive an email with a link to reschedule your session. If we must end a session abruptly within the first hour, you will receive a link to reschedule the session; after the first hour, we will issue a pro-rated credit that can be applied towards future services within 90 days of issue.
Obligations and Limitations
It is important that our clients understand what we DO NOT do as doulas:
- We do not take over care of your baby or babies and will not provide postpartum doula services without a parent or other legal guardian present in the home, except in medical emergencies.
- We do not diagnose or treat any medical or mental health condition for parents, caregivers, or babies. We will make appropriate referrals to medical and mental health care providers as needed.
- We do not perform clinical tasks such as checking vital signs, administering medication, or any other medical procedure that may fall under the legal definition of practicing medicine.
- We do not provide awake care during overnight sessions. If your babies require awake care for a medical condition, we will make appropriate referrals to medical professionals.
- We do not make decisions for you. We may offer coaching and direction toward evidence-based information to help you make informed choices for yourself and your baby or babies.
- We cannot not guarantee any outcome breastfeeding, infant sleep, or any other topic for which we provide coaching and guidance.
As professionals working with families with newborn babies, and knowing that newborn babies have fragile and immature immune systems, we make every effort to limit the spread of communicable diseases whenever possible. As a result of this commitment, we ask that if any members of your household are exhibiting signs of acute illness, that you inform us as soon as possible so that we may postpone and/or reschedule any postpartum sessions, without penalty, until all members of your household are feeling well. Likewise, if we suspect that we are exhibiting signs of illness, we will extend the same courtesy to inform you as soon as possible to arrange back-up support and/or postpone and/or reschedule our sessions until we are feeling well.
Your Obligations as Clients
This is your postpartum experience; we are here to help ease your transition to parenthood.
- You will contact our doula team as soon as possible if you know you need to reschedule one or more consultations or postpartum sessions for any reason.
- During overnight sessions, you will provide a comfortable sleep surface for doula use while baby/babies are sleeping.
- You will contact our doula team to reschedule postpartum sessions if your family is exhibiting symptoms of communicable illness, including, but not limited to, fever or symptoms of respiratory or gastrointestinal distress.
It is our hope and goal that you receive exceptional support during your postpartum experience. If you feel for any reason that we are not meeting this expectation, we encourage your direct feedback by an in-person or phone conversation.
Payments and Fees
For sessions booked online through our website, payment is due at the time of booking. There are no refunds for services booked online should you choose to cancel our services. Credits must be used within 90 days of issue.
All of our clients enjoy access to our lending library of reading materials and audio/video resources. These resources are available upon request and will be available for pick up/drop off at Community Prenatal Workshops and in-home visits. Should you misplace and/or damage any loaned material from our lending library, we will send you an invoice for the current replacement cost of the missing materials.
If you request that our doulas accompany you in your vehicle for any reason, we will send you an invoice for any transportation costs incurred by the doula to return to their vehicle. Additional fees may also be assessed for fees associated with providing practical support for running errands including, but not limited to fees for parking and/or tolls. If the doula uses their vehicle, travel fees may be assessed at a rate of $0.75/mile up to five miles round-trip, and $2.00 per mile beyond five miles round-trip. If you request that our doulas purchase anything on your behalf, we will only use your cash or pre-paid gift cards and we will provide your original receipt along with your purchase(s.)
Terms and Conditions
If either party has a grievance that cannot be resolved through mutually agreeable negotiation, we agree to first make a good faith effort to resolve the matter in mediation. The complaining party shall raise the dispute in writing by post or email and will include a list of 3-5 mediators available to conduct a minimum of two hours of mediation within 90 days or less. The party receiving the request for mediation shall choose one of the proffered mediators within 14 days, unless a conflict of interest exists. The two parties will split the mediator’s fees evenly and pay the mediator directly. If the mediation fails to produce a settlement, both parties are then free to pursue the rights and remedies available to them under the contract and the law.
The Silicon Valley Doulas understand that any and all private information obtained about our clients, client’s family, or relatives, including but not limited to medical, financial, legal, career, and assets are strictly confidential and may not be disclosed to any third party. If information about your experience is used for educational or peer review purposes, any and all identifying information will be omitted or changed to protect client confidentiality. Identifying information will be omitted from any information used for marketing purposes in print, web, and/or social media marketing, unless the client has provided consent in writing or via email. We reserve the right to copy text and/or screen shots of reviews, posts, photos, and testimonials posted by clients on social media websites in our print, web, and/or social media marketing.