🌿 Inclusive Full-Spectrum Birth Work Training ~ 60+ Hours (Online + Live Weekends)
Become a BirthPro Full-Spectrum Birth Worker — serving families from pregnancy through postpartum with confidence, compassion, and skill. This training is built as a complete, full-spectrum program with 60+ required hours and a deep library of 30+ hours of supplemental content for those who want to go further. Postpartum-focused pathway available for those specifically seeking postpartum certification. Contact us to discuss.
Families are seeking skilled, compassionate birth professionals — and with growing demand nationwide, this comprehensive program prepares you to support families through pregnancy, birth, postpartum healing, feeding, newborn care, loss, high-risk situations, and community resource navigation.
Designed for providers seeking a culturally humble, trauma-aware foundation, this training meets multi-state competency expectations and prepares participants for Medicaid and HSA reimbursement pathways, where available by state and payer.
Tuition & Pathway Options
Full-Spectrum Birth Work Training — $850
Summer session June 27/28 & July 11: 11-6pm ET
Two live virtual weekends + 60+ hours of required self-paced modules + weekly mentoring calls.
Certification Fees: There are no additional certification or processing fees paid to BirthPro.
Partial scholarships and payment plans available
Recertification every 3 years: 12 CEUs related to birth, postpartum, lactation, or professional development must be submitted for recertification. There are no fees for recertification. Please submit CEU packets and questions via email to Connect@BirthPro.org
Become a BirthPro Full Spectrum Birth Worker
🌸 Why Now Is the Time
There has never been a greater need for skilled, full-spectrum birth workers. Families are seeking inclusive support, healthcare systems are opening pathways for trained providers, and states across the country are expanding coverage for birth work.
If you're ready to gain the skills, credibility, and grounding to serve your community across birth, postpartum, or both, this program is for you.
BirthPro's Full-Spectrum Birth Work Training prepares you to:
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Serve with culturally humble, trauma-aware care
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Support pregnancy, birth, postpartum healing, and newborn transitions
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Navigate systems like WIC, Medicaid, and home visiting programs
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Build a sustainable birth work practice rooted in equity and community
Led by Lorie Michaels, CD(DONA), LCCE, CLC, BRMPro+, PMH-C
EBB Instructor • BRM/BRB Instructor • Spinning Babies Childbirth Educator
With 20+ years of experience supporting hundreds of families and training the next generation of birth workers, Lorie brings deep expertise across birth, postpartum, physiology, emotional wellness, perinatal mental health, and reproductive justice.
Her approach blends evidence-based practice with inclusive, culturally humble care — so you feel confident, prepared, and supported from day one.
Birth work is not learned in isolation. Alongside instruction led by Lorie Michaels, this training features guest faculty whose voices reflect the diversity, depth, and real-world wisdom of today’s birth work community.
BirthPro Guest Faculty | Community-Rooted, Equity-Centered Educators
Guest faculty participation varies by training cohort and pathway.
🌼 What You’ll Learn
Full-Spectrum birth workers complete all sections below. Postpartum-only pathway available by request — contact us to discuss.
Pregnancy & Birth Support
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Understand pregnancy physiology, stages of labor, and coping strategies
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Offer hands-on comfort measures and positioning tools
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Support high-risk, medically complex, VBAC, breech, and unexpected scenarios
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Navigate trauma, PMADs, grounding techniques, and emotional safety
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Apply reproductive justice principles in all birth spaces
Postpartum & Newborn Care
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Support newborn feeding, soothing, and normal adjustment
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Guide families through postpartum healing and recovery
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Understand infant behavior, sleep basics, and feeding cues
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Provide household, partner, and practical support within scope
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Recognize warning signs and make appropriate referrals
Full-Spectrum Competencies
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Support loss, abortion, and difficult outcomes with compassion
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Hold space across diverse cultural traditions, including Indigenous and LGBTQ+ communities
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Apply anti-racism principles to everyday practice
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Understand the birth professional's role within community systems
Professional Practice
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Build a sustainable business rooted in equity and clarity
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Navigate contracts, policies, boundaries, and scope
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Document care ethically and confidently
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Prepare for Medicaid and insurance-based reimbursement programs
🌈 Your Training Journey at a Glance
Live Training Weekends (Virtual)
Two live virtual weekends covering pregnancy, birth support, comfort measures, advocacy, trauma-informed care, cultural safety, postpartum healing, and practical newborn care.
Self-Paced Learning Modules
60+ hours of core and supplemental content completed on your own time:
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Lactation basics
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PMAD recognition & support
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Feeding + newborn care
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Household/practical postpartum skills
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Reproductive justice foundations
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Cultural humility across full-spectrum care
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Scope of practice + documentation
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Systems navigation
Ongoing Support
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Weekly mentoring calls
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Access to a private BirthPro community
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Continuing education opportunities
🌿 More Than a Certification — This Is Your Launchpad
BirthPro’s training supports birth workers who want to go beyond textbook learning and step confidently into real-world, community-based practice.
Alongside your certification, you’ll receive:
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Weekly live mentoring
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Evidence-based pregnancy, birth, and postpartum strategies
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Real-world advocacy tools & system navigation know-how
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Emotional wellness tools (EFT integration)
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A supportive community of fellow birth workers
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Practical business foundations to help you thrive
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Ongoing invitations to deepen your skills
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A BirthPro Full-Spectrum Birth Worker Badge for your website + socials
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A MassHealth Doula Competency Attestation Letter (where applicable)
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Alternative Balance professional liability insurance discount
Special Offer for BirthPro Doulas
BirthPro graduates are eligible for a discounted Evidence Based Birth® Professional Membership, supporting continued learning, advocacy, and access to evidence-based resources for families.
Standard EBB Pro membership is $69/month.
BirthPro graduates may enroll for $29/month for the first year (a $480 savings).
Graduates leave feeling confident, prepared, and supported.
Certification Requirements
To earn your BirthPro Full Spectrum Birth Worker Certification, you’ll need to:
✅ Complete all required modules within 12 months of your start date
✅ Provide hands-on support for 3 birth experiences and 2 postpartum families (volunteer or paid; birth and postpartum support may occur with the same family)
✅ Complete "Black Brilliance: A Culturally Responsive Anti-Racism Doula Training" module
✅ Hold a current Infant/Child CPR certification
✅ Complete and submit the BirthPro client documentation form for each family supported (forms and guidelines provided)
✅ Participate in weekly mentoring calls as part of your certification accountability structure
Upon Completion, You’ll Receive:
🎓 A BirthPro Certificate of Completion (90-hour training)
🎬 Listing on our BirthPro Birth Support Directory
🏅 A digital BirthPro Certification Badge
📄 A Competency Attestation Letter (where applicable)
📚 Evidence Based Birth® professional membership discount
💸 Alternative Balance professional liability insurance discount
Advanced Standing & Equivalency
Already practicing? Already trained elsewhere? BirthPro offers a pathway for experienced birth workers to earn certification through demonstrated competency, documented experience, and mentor evaluation.
Who this is for:
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Birth workers certified through an organization not currently approved by your state Medicaid or insurance program
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Long-practicing birth workers with substantial experience but no formal certification
Requirements:
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Completed Advanced Standing application packet
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Copy of existing certification or documented experience summary
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Two professional references
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Reflective portfolio (included in application)
Fee: $500 (all tracks) — payment plans available
Approval includes your BirthPro certificate, credentials, directory listing, and lifetime access to our graduate mentoring community.
Download complete application packet here (this will be uploaded when you schedule your review)
Who this may not be the right fit for
BirthPro trainings are grounded in birth equity, full-spectrum care, and inclusive, community-centered practice. If you are unwilling to support LGBTQ+ families, affirm abortion as part of reproductive care, or engage in reflection around personal and systemic bias (including racism, transphobia, and cultural appropriation), this training may not be the right fit.
We welcome participants who come with openness, humility, and a commitment to learning in community.
Who this is for:
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New or aspiring birth workers ready to begin or formalize their practice.
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Parents, caregivers, or helpers seeking professional-level birth and postpartum training.
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Anyone seeking inclusive, evidence-based, trauma-informed education.
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People who learn best with live support, mentorship, and community.
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Those seeking full-spectrum training within an inclusive, evidence-based framework.
Already trained? → Check out our Mentoring page
Ready to begin your journey?
Join a professional learning community rooted in mentorship, peer support, and continuing education.
Led by Lorie Michaels, CD(DONA), LCCE, CLC — with 20+ years of experience mentoring students in trauma-informed, inclusive care.