At the beginning of 2024 we were curious about how many doulas were working in TN. Several years ago the state did research and only found 150 doulas. Our team decided to research and find out if we had more than that. After 3 months we had a great starting map of doulas across the state.
Now it is time to see where we need doulas. Our first goal was to have 10 doulas in each of the 95 counties. The counties colored in green met those qualifications.
Next, we decided that if half of the pregnant moms wanted a doula to serve them, we would need 1 doula per 72 pregnant moms. Based on our calculations and research, more doulas are needed in TN.
We continued to research and train doulas of the next several months. Below, you will find the current number of doulas across the state. Currently, we have mapped 428 doulas and you can see improvement in several areas. We are excited to have more color on the map.
We also took the state data and analyzed it to see where more doulas are needed. To combat the maternal mortality rate, we need more doulas in the upper Cumberland area and in Memphis. To combat the infant mortality rate, we need more doulas in the west part of the state. We also hope to target the areas that are care deserts, which are 19 counties that are 65 miles from care. Our hope is that more doulas will mean better education and support to families across the state and lead to improved outcomes.
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