Maternal & Family Health
Explore the Doula Pathway
Understand how the CHW role and the Doula role complement each other — and how they differ.
What CHWs actually do here
CHW and Doula work can overlap in maternal health, but they are not the same pathway. In California, Medi-Cal doula services have their own enrollment and training expectations set by DHCS.
Where this work happens
- Community birth and maternal health organizations
- Hospitals and clinics
- Health plans covering doula benefits
- Home visiting programs
Job titles to look for
- Community Health Worker — Maternal Health
- Doula (separate pathway)
- Perinatal Navigator
- Family Support Specialist
Skills that matter in this pathway
- Perinatal support
- Advocacy and respectful care
- Resource navigation
- Culturally rooted care
Community Health Worker or Doula?
Two related roles that people mix up. Here's how they overlap, how they differ, and how they work together.
Community Health Worker
- Health education, navigation and coordination across the perinatal period
- Connects families to benefits, housing, food and behavioral health
- Medi-Cal CHW Benefit pathway
Doula
- Non-clinical physical, emotional and informational birth support
- Present through labor, birth and the postpartum period
- Separate California Medi-Cal doula benefit and enrollment pathway
Where they overlap
- Trusted, community-rooted relationships
- Advocacy for respectful, equitable care
- Postpartum check-ins and resource connection
Where they differ
- Doulas provide labor and birth support; CHWs generally do not
- Each role has its own Medi-Cal pathway and billing rules
- Training and enrollment requirements are different
How they collaborate
- A CHW can handle benefits and appointments while a doula supports the birth experience
- Both may serve the same family through a health plan program
Does a credential matter here?
- Helps: You want to provide labor and birth support
- Helps: You plan to enroll as a Medi-Cal doula provider
- Optional: You want to stay in navigation, education and coordination work
- Optional: Your maternal health employer hires CHWs without doula training
Training for this pathway
Catalyst training and curated outside options, each labeled so you know who issues it.
No training is tagged to this pathway yet — check Professional Development for the full directory.
Next steps
- Review current California DHCS doula benefit information before enrolling in any doula training.
- Not every maternal health CHW needs to become a doula — choose the pathway that fits your goals.
Jobs in this pathway
Live postings from the Career Center that match this pathway's specialties.
No live postings tagged to this pathway right now.
Visit the Career CenterMentors in this pathway
Find members already working in explore the doula pathway and request a mentor.