Courses
Doula Care Across the Lifespan-2026/2027
| Level 1 | ||||
| Gen Ed - Take a 3 credit General Education elective course. | ||||
| Take all of the following Mandatory Courses: | ||||
| HLTH-1230 | Historical Context-Reproductive Culture | 3 | ||
| This course introduces students to the historical milestones that have shaped the current reproductive healthcare landscape. Drawing on anthropology, sociology, and health policy, students will explore how cultural, political, and systemic factors influence reproductive experiences and outcomes. Through a framework of reproductive justice, the course considers pathways towards more equitable care. | ||||
| HLTH-1231 | Anatomy & Physiology of Reproduction | 3 | ||
| This course introduces the biology of reproduction. Students will explore biochemistry, basic medical terminology, and the anatomy and physiology of the human body's eleven systems. Additional topics include physiological adaptations to pregnancy, embryology, lactation, and labour. | ||||
| HLTH-1232 | Preparing for Birth 1 | 3 | ||
| This course introduces learners to foundational concepts within preconception, pregnancy and the process of labour and birth for the labouring person, partner, and doula. Students will learn to apply basic comfort and supportive measures aligned with a Doula's scope of practice. Students will learn how to accompany families throughout pregnancy, labour and birth across reproductive environments. | ||||
| HLTH-1233 | Postpartum 1 | 3 | ||
| This course focuses on identifying the needs of new families as they transition into the first six weeks of the postpartum period. The cultural context of newborn care and socio-environmental space of the family are examined. Emphasis is placed on learning the basics of parental adjustment, infant feeding, postpartum mental health, and the role of the doula within the postpartum space. Emerging skills, strategies, and the ability to identify appropriate community resources to become responsive to the dynamic needs of families in transition are developed. | ||||
| HLTH-1234 | Self & Others | 3 | ||
| This course focuses on understanding interpersonal relationships in order to effectively navigate the complex and multidimensional world of reproductive health. Students critically explore their personal beliefs, values and assumptions, about themselves as part of a family, culture, and different communities. This course enhances interpersonal communication as the learner becomes more self-reflective, learning to nurture supportive relationships while setting professional boundaries. | ||||
| WRIT-1048 | Reason & Writing 1 for Health Sciences | 3 | ||
| This course will introduce health sciences students to essential principles of reading, writing, and reasoning at the postsecondary level. Students will identify, summarize, analyze, and evaluate multiple short readings and write persuasive response essays to develop their vocabulary, comprehension, grammar, and critical thinking. | ||||
| HLTH-1236 | Practicum 1 | 3 | ||
| Practicum One enables students to develop an understanding of breadth and depth of the applied role of the doula. Students are assigned community placements that provide a variety of diverse observational and practical experiences. Students learn alongside a variety of practitioners who engage with families across a wide range of circumstances related to doula practice during the perinatal period. Students begin to apply the theoretical concepts learned in the classroom to practical environments that include in-home, institutional, community, classroom, and lab-based settings. Experiences are designed to expose students to a wide range of opportunities while allowing them to identify their strengths. | ||||
| Level 2 | ||||
| Take all of the following Mandatory Courses: | ||||
| HLTH-5026 | Birth Topics-Adv | 3 | ||
| This advanced course builds students' capacity to provide evidence-informed, compassionate, and inclusive support through pregnancy, labour, and birth. Learners will explore common pregnancy, birth, and postpartum complications and guide clients in making informed decisions using credible, culturally relevant resources within the doula's scope of practice. | ||||
| HLTH-5021 | Postpartum Topics-Adv | 3 | ||
| This course focuses on advanced postpartum adjustment and the spectrum of postpartum outcomes from six weeks to one year. Students explore postpartum topics including advanced infant feeding challenges and options, post-abortion support, loss and grief, and advocacy related to mental wellness and nutrition. Students develop skills to accompany the diverse roads to parenthood, including adoption, surrogacy and 2SLGBTQ+ families. Students apply critical appraisal skills regarding information sourcing for client support and community referrals. | ||||
| BUSI-1242 | Intro to Business - Full Spectrum Doula | 3 | ||
| In this course, students and faculty collaborate to discuss the diverse knowledge and skills that will assist Doulas in starting and operating a full-spectrum doula business. The course will guide students to explore various topics, including business marketing, business logistics such as scheduling, developing social media content, inter/intra-professional collaboration, the role of a doula, professional behaviours, reflective practice, and cultural humility. Students will have the opportunity to decide how to construct a business plan and evaluate issues surrounding entrepreneurship and owning one's own business, such as legal matters, ethics, risk, and market space. Together students and faculty will critically examine the meaning of an online presence and how to create a welcoming space for all bodies and families. | ||||
| HLTH-1240 | Supporting Transitions | 3 | ||
| This course explores the emotional, social, and cultural transitions that occur during the journey to parenthood and across diverse reproductive experiences. Emphasis is placed on developing relational resilience, self-care, and compassionate communication skills when navigating complex care dynamics among clients, families, and interdisciplinary providers. Students will learn to support individuals and families through changing relationships, experiences of loss, and evolving identities while considering how information, culture, and emotional well-being shape these transitions. Through reflective practice, case studies, and guest speakers, learners will examine the complexities of compassion fatigue, ethical challenges, and vicarious trauma while cultivating a trauma-informed, inclusive, and sustainable approach to doula care. | ||||
| HLTH-1241 | Practicum 2 | 6.7 | ||
| Practicum Two builds upon the foundational knowledge and experiences developed in the first term. In this term, students transition from an observational role to being more actively engaged with individuals within a variety of community-based settings. Students apply their understanding of doula practice through more immersive, community-engaged, and independent learning. The integration of theory, self-reflection, and practice within diverse care environments is emphasized. Students deepen their comprehension of the doula's scope, ethical considerations, and relational competencies in providing person-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally safe care while supervised by doula clinical faculty. | ||||
| HLTH-1271 | Grief, Loss & Death | 3 | ||
| This course prepares students to accompany individuals, families, and communities experiencing loss, and the grief these events bring about. Students will have opportunities to critically reflect on theories of death, grief, and loss across various cultural contexts, and to apply their learning to the full range of reproduction options and outcomes. Students learn to identify their role as part of a larger care team, working with family members, healthcare providers, and community organizations supporting end-of-life care and transitions. In addition to topics such as stillbirth and miscarriage, this course engages with a broad range of overlapping loss topics, such as trauma and violence, maternal death, systemic injustice, and loss/denial of community as a result of oppression and exclusion. | ||||
| HLTH-1272 | Information & Evidence-Doula Practice | 3 | ||
| This course prepares students to become critical consumers of information and research. Students learn how different ways of knowing support a doula's thoughts and actions within a doula's scope of practice. The influences of social media and other sources of information upon doula practice are explored. Students are introduced to primary and secondary sources of evidence and learn that research is an important part of their ongoing commitment to developing the doula profession's knowledge base. | ||||
| Level 3 | ||||
| Gen Ed - Take a 3 credit General Education elective course. | ||||
| Take all of the following Mandatory Courses: | ||||
| HLTH-3078 | Death and Dying & the Role of the Doula | 3 | ||
| This course introduces the doula's role in supporting individuals and families through end-of-life stages. Topics include the evolution of home hospice, eco-conscious death care, vigiling, advance care planning, the legal framework around Power of Attorney and substitute decision-making, the complexities of grief and traumatic loss, and the various roles within the death industry. | ||||
| HLTH-3079 | Indigenous Knowledges & Doulas' Role | 3 | ||
| This course examines the continued impacts of both past and present settler colonization on the health and well-being of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples across the lifespan, including birth, loss, and dying. Students learn how the legacies of residential schools, the Sixties Scoop, systemic racism, and the medicalization of birth and death continue to shape the experiences of Indigenous families within contemporary health and social systems. Centering Indigenous worldviews, community strengths, and relational-based approaches to wellness and healing, students learn how to apply culturally safe, trauma-informed, and anti-oppressive practices when supporting Indigenous individuals, families and communities. | ||||
| HLTH-3080 | Inclusive Reproductive Health Care | 2 | ||
| This course explores the concepts of inclusion, belonging, and justice within the context of reproductive health care. Students examine how systems of power, privilege, and oppression shape experiences of pregnancy, birth, loss, and parenting. Topics include disability justice, de-colonization, fat liberation, trauma-informed care, and trans- and queer-inclusive practices. Students develop programming that offers safe, affirming, and non-judgmental curriculum for all individuals and families. | ||||
| HLTH-3081 | Practicum 3 | 1.2 | ||
| In this third term practicum, students build on the skills and knowledge and deepen their understanding of the diverse and evolving role of the doula by moving into more specialized and independent work, allowing them to explore an area of personal interest within the scope of a doula's practice. They continue to apply the concepts learned in the classroom to the practical environment. Placements are comprised of a combination of in-home, institution, community, classroom, and lab-based experiences. | ||||
| HLTH-3082 | Applied Thanatology for Doula Practice | 3 | ||
| In this course, students continue to explore the history, theories and practices that shape how doulas support individuals and families through dying, death and bereavement. Informed by the interdisciplinary field of thanatology, students learn about the biological, psychosocial, anthropological, political, financial, and spiritual dimensions of death and dying. Students examine emerging trends that are changing the deathcare industry, including eco-conscious practices, "digitalizing" death, home funerals and ancestorial deathcare. | ||||
| HLTH-3083 | Abortion Care | 3 | ||
| This course deepens students' understanding of the emotional, physical, and ethical dimensions of abortion. Topics include options-counselling, communication and confidentiality, personal safety, aftercare, and navigating barriers to abortion access within urban, rural, and remote settings. Students also examine the complexities of stigma, language, and institutional bias, and consider the doula's unique contribution as a companion, advocate, and activist. The course traces the history of global reproductive justice frameworks and approaches abortion care as part of the continuum of reproductive health and human rights that doulas advocate for across the lifespan. | ||||
| Level 4 | ||||
| Gen Ed - Take a 3 credit General Education elective course. | ||||
| Take all of the following Mandatory Courses: | ||||
| HLTH-5034 | Assisted Dying and the Role of the Doula | 3 | ||
| This advanced course explores the history, legislation, and evolving practice of assisted dying around the world, and Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) in Canada. With a focus on the doula's role in providing informed, ethical, and compassionate support, students examine the legal frameworks, eligibility criteria, and procedural safeguards that guide MAiD, as well as the moral, emotional, and professional complexities that accompany end-of-life decision-making. Students explore approaches to life review, anticipatory grief, and post-death family care in the context of MAiD. The perspectives of disability communities, youth, and other populations historically excluded from normative, end-of-life discourses are included in learning content and discussions. | ||||
| HLTH-5035 | Advanced Reproductive Health Topics | 3 | ||
| This course expands upon foundational knowledge of reproductive health care to examine the complexities of supporting clients with diverse health needs. Students explore how disability, chronic illness, and the social determinants of health shape reproductive experiences across the lifespan. Careful attention is placed on the doula's scope of practice in responding to emergency or high-risk circumstances such as infant resuscitation and postpartum hemorrhage. Additional topics include infertility and perimenopause. | ||||
| HLTH-5036 | Practicum 4 | 2.8 | ||
| In the fourth and final level of the Doula diploma program, students participate in an advanced, experiential learning opportunity designed to equip aspiring doulas with the skills necessary to create, facilitate, and evaluate a community-based group. This practicum enables students to apply the concepts learned related to professional expertise, community engagement, knowledge dissemination, and support within the doula's scope of practice. | ||||
| HLTH-5037 | Pathways to Practice | 3 | ||
| Students are introduced to the many pathways to practice doulas pursue in the community beyond private business ownership. Building on core principles of entrepreneurship such as budgeting, marketing, communication, and professional collaboration that were introduced in first year, students extend their understanding toward collective care, sustainability, social responsibility, and systems change. Students strengthen and apply leadership skills in areas of grant writing, lobbying, and policy development. | ||||
| HLTH-5038 | Spirituality & Ritual Across Lifespan | 2 | ||
| In this course, students examine how religion, faith, culture, and belief systems shape experiences of birth, loss, and dying. Students explore the various cultural practices, ceremonies and rituals that support healing, connection, and meaning-making through transitions that occur across the lifespan. This course traces the historical suppression and criminalization of cultural and spiritual practices under settler colonialism, highlighting how these legacies continue to shape access to care and expressions of spirituality today. | ||||
| Gen Ed - Electives | ||||
| Take 9 General Education Credits - Normally taken in Levels 1, 3 and 4 | ||||
| Program Residency | ||||
| Students Must Complete a Minimum of 21 credits in this program at Fanshawe College to meet the Program Residency requirement and graduate from this program | ||||