#414: Advocacy is a Team Sport

Join us for an in-depth conversation with Meredith Nelson and Alicia Fishbein, board-certified patient advocates and seasoned doulas from Intentional Birth. The episode explores the critical role of advocacy in childbirth, covering topics from prenatal visits to labor and NICU challenges. Learn how to navigate hospitals, advocate effectively for clients, and transform traumatic experiences into empowering and supportive births. The discussion includes real-life stories, practical tools, and heartwarming successes, emphasizing the need for stronger advocacy in maternity care.

About Meredith Nelson & Alicia Fishbein

Meredith and Alicia are board-certified patient advocates, seasoned doulas, and the founders of Intentional Birth and of the Perinatal Patient Advocacy Center.

When they attended their original doula trainings, they were taught not to speak up on their clients' behalf. Don't rock the boat. Doulas don't advocate. Smile and nod at care providers. Then they began attending births, and realized that their clients were walking away feeling powerless and traumatized (they were, too). They knew there was a bigger role for them to play.

More than a dozen years later, they are training birth professionals as patient advocates. They teach the confidence-building strategies, the detailed systems for educating and preparing their clients, and the robust set of communication and advocacy tools that they developed as they transformed their practices toward true support of their clients' legal rights and human needs.

Website: intentionalbirth.co

E-mail: hello@intentionalbirth.co

Instagram: @intentional.birth

Resources

Intentional Birth: https://www.intentionalbirth.co/

Perinatal Patient Advocacy Center: https://perinatalpatientadvocacy.org/

ACOG Opinion Piece: Refusal of Medically Recommended Treatment During Pregnancy

In This Episode

Advocacy and Patient Rights

The Role of Doulas and Patient Advocates

Training and Empowering Doulas

Understanding Hospital Culture and Hierarchy

Empathy as a Foundational Advocacy Tool

Humanizing the Room: Practical Tools for Doulas

The Importance of Partner Advocacy

Navigating Prenatal Visits and Hospital Advocacy

This show is supported by

• Birth Sling | Go to https://thebirthsling.com/ code INSTINCTS for 10% off your sling.
• Restorative Roots | Go to https://restorativemeals.com/ code BIRTHINGINSTINCTS for 10% off weekly meal plans.
• WeNatal | Go to WeNatal.com/Birthinginstincts for a free magnesium with any subscription order.
• BIRTHFIT | Go to birthfit.com and use the code INSTINCTS for 20% off any fitness program.
• Pique Life| Go to https://piquelife.com/birthing to get 10% off for life on Pique's Herbal Teas!

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