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Brief Description of the Program •The Healthy Start Community Doula Program will support, educate, and empower pregnant women to take control of their health. The doulas are with them through their pregnancy, birth and beyond. First, what is a doula?They are trained non-medical professionals who provide continuous physical, emotional and informational support to a mother before, during and shortly after childbirth to help her achieve the healthiest, most satisfying experience possible. More importantly doulas have been shown to have a great impact on birth outcomes and health literacy. Indian River County Healthy Start Coalition (IRCHSC) has been charged through State of Florida statute with the responsibility of assessing and implementing ways to improve maternal child health within our county. Although our ' services have been successful in assisting mothers and babies to be healthier in many ways, the Healthy Start Community Doula program is a link that mends a gap between two of the programs that are currently in place at Healthy Start. Through this grant IRCHSC will host a DONA International doula training in the community. This training will have 12 spots available. After completion of training and certification, one doula will be employed full- time by Healthy Start and serving approximately 36 women with prenatal, birth and postpartum care in the first year. Four participants will be Healthy Start Community doulas. They will provide two primary tasks. First, to serve as a backup for the full-time staff member, and second, to attend births of women who arrive at the hospital to give birth alone. These doulas will serve 33 women in the first year. The remaining spots will be open to the community to those who are interested in becoming a self-employed doula within their community. Preference will be given to Itrusted members of communities in populations in which infant mortality is the highest. 2017044 Page 4 of 26 05/03/2017