If you are in any Doula or NCS industry-specific group on social media, it’s likely that you’ve seen at least one, if not several posts about working with agencies in the industry. Many of these posts share opinions based on agencies the OP has personally dealt with or based on stories they’ve been told by others around them.
This series will provide basic guidelines and information to Doulas and Newborn Care Specialists to better understand the differences in the agencies they come across, how each of those works, and the pros and cons of each.
The controversy surrounding doula and newborn care specialist agencies revolves around how the clients are charged vs how the providers are paid. On one hand, there are those who believe that the only valid way to run an agency is by placing providers with clients. (Placement) On the other hand, some argue that because of updated regulations being placed on how contract work is done in the U.S. that employing providers is the only way to move forward as government regulation of the industry continues to climb.
There are also debates over which segments of the market deserve access to these services, what new providers deserve to make, and how much agencies should be allowed to make. Some people argue that families cannot afford to pay minimum hourly rates of $40/hr. plus agency fees should simply not have access, while others believe that such requirements could serve as a barrier to families who are the most in need and providers who do not yet have the experience to command such a fee.
Finally, many people take issue with how doula and newborn care specialist agencies get paid for their services.
Doulas and NCS typically charge per hour or per session, but some worry that this could lead to financial exploitation if agencies are charging excessively high rates without taking into account factors like poverty or cultural background. This has been an ongoing source of controversy for many years as various groups disagree about how much doulas and NCS should be allowed to charge for their services.
The information in this series is meant to offer insight for those seeking more information and as a basic guide to providers who would like to work with agencies in the future. Only the reader can decide where they stand, but it’s far past time to work together to improve the industry rather than being angry at each other and judgmental of who makes how much and whether they deserve it or not.
This series cannot cover every possible scenario in every area of the U.S. There will always be exceptions, caveats, and outliers. The cost of living varies wildly from state to state. Cultural acceptance regarding the value of personal services are completely different on the East Coast vs the West Coast, and the Midwest is completely different than the coasts. Individual agencies vary widely in size (do they have multiple people working in the office or is it a one-person show?) and overhead. Individual providers have different goals, boundaries, and expectations. (Do they choose to only serve high net worth clients or are they focused on their local community and culture? Are they planning ahead for retirement, coming from a minimum wage job, or attempting to replace the income from a completely different industry?)
Let’s dive in.
