Making the case for innovative reentry employment programs: previously incarcerated women as birth doulas – a case study

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPH-07-2016-0026
• Date: 11 September 2017
• Pages: 219-227
• Published date: 11 September 2017
• Author: Monica R. McLemore,Zakeya Warner Hand
• Subject Matter: Health & social care,Criminology & forensic psychology,Prisoner health,Sociology,Sociology of crime & law,Public policy & environmental management,Policing,Criminal justice

Making the case for innovative reentry

employment programs: previously

incarcerated women as birth doulas –a

case study

Monica R. McLemore and Zakeya Warner Hand

Abstract

Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to make a case for novel and innovative reentry programs focused on

women of color and to describe policy recommendations that are necessary to support the sustainability of

these programs and in turn the success of the women who participate in them.

Design/methodology/approach –A review and analysis of the literature that described job-training

opportunities specifically targeted to women exiting jail and the impact on recidivism provided limited

information. The authors developed, implemented, and evaluated doula training program for low-income and

women of color to determine if birth work could provide stable income and decrease recidivism.

Findings –Training low-income formerly incarcerated women to become birth doulas is an innovative

strategy to solve employment barriers faced by women reentering communities from jail. Realigning women

within communities via birth support to other women also provides culturally relevant and appropriate

members of the healthcare team for traditionally vulnerable populations. Doulas are important members of

the healthcare workforce and can improve birth outcomes. The authors’work testing doula training, as a

reentry vocational program has been successful in producing 16 culturally relevant and appropriate doulas of

color that experienced no re-arrests and to date no program participant has experienced recidivism.

Originality/value –To be successful, the intersections of race, gender, and poverty, for women of color

should be considered in the design of reentry programs for individuals exitingjail. The authors’work provided

formerly incarcerated and low-income women of color with vocational skills that provide consistent income,

serve as a gateway to the health professions, and increase the numbers of well-trained people of color who

serve as providers of care.

Keywords Criminal justice system, Qualitative research, Public health, Recidivism, Women prisoners,

Women’s health

Paper type Research paper

Introduction

This policy brief in support of doula training as novel and innovative new programming for reentry

populations could address two vexing problems: difficulties of gaining employment and

generating income for formerly incarcerated women and cultural gaps in pregnancy related care

in traditionally underserved communities. We provide evidence to support doula work as a viable

vocational option for women exiting jail and make policy recommendations to fund doula work

and programs that provide doula training.

Background

Worldwide,women are most likely to be incarceratedfor relatively minor, non-violentcrimes. In the

USA, this means that many morewomen are incarcerated in local jails than in stateor federal-run

Received 15 July 2016

Revised 16 November 2016

25 March 2017

Accepted 17 May 2017

The authors thank the Birth Justice

Project and Black Women Birthing

Justice for their leadership in this

work. The authors also

acknowledge funding from the

Alameda County Public Health

Department, Contract No. 1IIR-08-

191 A122424. Warner Hand was

supported by NIH Grant No.

5R25CA078583 to the Minority

Training Program in Cancer

Control Research and Health

Disparities.

Monica R. McLemore is an

Assistant Professor and

Zakeya Warner Hand is a

Research Assistant and

Summer Intern, both at

the University of California,

San Francisco, California, USA.

DOI 10.1108/IJPH-07-2016-0026 VOL. 13 NO. 3/4 2017, pp. 219-227, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 1744-9200

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