My First Field Placement with The Winnipeg Boldness Project: Indigenous Doulas and Health Advocacy

By Ari Phanlouvong, 1st year MDP student 

 

Tipi in the sun

The Indigenous doula program is a one of a kind service offered in Manitoba for Indigenous women who travel for birth. As I have learned through interviews, as well as through discussions with friends, there are many common misconceptions about the role of doulas in birth. Indigenous doulas are however distinct as they offer women with emotional support, along with an optional support that is culturally based. This cultural support includes teachings, stories, ceremonies, natural medicines and teas for women during pregnancy, birth and postpartum. More importantly, Indigenous doulas ensure that women are in control of events and processes surrounding birth, and that they are provided with support and resources that are necessary for informed decision-making. Thus, I learned this summer that the Indigenous doulas not only provided emotional care, but were also very strong advocates for women in the hospital setting. 

In the same sense, as partners in the doula program, The Winnipeg Boldness Project (Boldness) and the North End Women’s Centre offered a “Baby Basket” to all families participating in the program. The Baby Basket allows families to choose several items from a variety of categories such as bathing and hygiene, clothing, toys and books, and even some cultural items such as a star blanket and moccasins. The Baby Basket package therefore advocates and ensures that each basket respects families’ right to self-determination.

Tucker, the Boldness office sweetheart

This field placement has helped me to develop not only practical skills in the field of research, but has also enabled me to think of Indigenous women’s health differently.

I had the privilege of meeting and working with many new individuals throughout the summer, from the hardworking and passionate women at Boldness, and a great research team, to the families in the community, the doulas, and some of the women who have initiated this program. Meeting individuals from such a broad range of professional backgrounds and experiences has allowed me to really understand the different aspects of the Indigenous doula program.

 

My First Field Placement with The Winnipeg Boldness Project: Supporting Winnipeg's Indigenous Doulas

By Ari Phanlouvong, 1st year MDP student

The Winnipeg Boldness Project's colourful entrance

My first MDP Field Placement is with The Winnipeg Boldness Project (Boldness), located in the heart of Point Douglas. Boldness is a social innovation lab that tackles social challenges and systematic barriers as identified by community members, and focuses on designing community-driven and community-led programs guided by a child-centered model.

Boldness's awesome ladies hard at work

What drew me to Boldness is its involvement in supporting the first Indigenous doula program in Winnipeg and in Manitoba. This program is led by Wiijii’idiwag Ikwewag (Manitoba Indigenous Doula Initiative (MIDI)) which was founded in 2015 by a group of Indigenous women in Manitoba. In case you’re wondering what ‘doulas’ are, they are defined as helpers or birth companions to expectant mothers. Doulas support women through pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period, providing emotional and social support. An Indigenous doula possesses the same skills but also provides Indigenous women with support that is culturally based, enabling mothers to connect spiritually through traditions and ceremonies. 

The event poster I created for the doula's celebration

Wiijiii’idiwag Ikwewag envisions the Indigenous doula program as an important step toward reclaiming birth in defiance of Health Canada’s maternal evacuation policy, which forces expectant mothers living on-reserve in rural and remote regions to be transferred out of their home communities to larger centres to give birth. This pilot program was made possible through the combined efforts of Wiijiii’idiwag Ikwewag, Nanaandawegimig ((First Nations Health & Social Secretariat (FNHSSM)), the Winnipeg Boldness Project, the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA), and Mount Carmel Clinic. In the coming years, the Indigenous doula program is expected to develop in Cross Lake and two other remote communities in Manitoba, underlining the necessity in supporting travelling expectant mothers and their families, and for a holistic approach to health.

Boldness is specifically involved in the evaluation of the Indigenous doula program. The first urban cohort of doulas was trained earlier this year and supported Indigenous mothers in Winnipeg, as well as mothers who travelled from Norway House Cree Nation and Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation (Nelson House). Part of the evaluation process consists of meeting with doulas and the mothers they support, and conducting interviews. I was tasked with interviewing some of the families which helped better understand the impacts that the program has had in the community. Through stories told by the mothers and the doulas, I have learned about some of the barriers and challenges faced by Indigenous mothers in the healthcare system, the important role that doulas have as advocates for these women, and a strong desire in the community to welcome their children to the world in a way that fits with a family’s values and beliefs.

The 1st cohort of Indigenous Doulas on the graduation day