REPLAY: EBB 283 - How Colonialism, Environmental Instability, & Politics Impact Birth in Puerto Rico with EBB Instructors, Tania Silva Meléndez and Tamara Trinidad González, CPM
Release Date: 09/17/2025
EBB 378 - Embracing the Dual Calling of Doula Work + Midwifery with Chanté Perryman and Elder Charlotte Shilo-Goudeau
Evidence Based Birth®
Across generations, birth workers have held space for families with skill, love, and deep purpose. In this episode, Dr. Rebecca Dekker talks with Elder Midwife Charlotte Shilo-Goudeau, a licensed Certified Professional Midwife from Louisiana, and Chanté Perryman, Director of Programs at Evidence Based Birth®, certified doula, and student midwife. Together, they explore what it means to embrace the dual calling of doula work and midwifery and how both roles are acts of service, advocacy, and healing. Elder Charlotte shares her journey from personal loss to becoming one of only a few...
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Bonus Announcement: Surprise Project for Doulas
Evidence Based Birth®
Introducing the My Doula Visit Workbook by Evidence Based Birth®. A tangible, interactive, and evidence-based guide designed to facilitate conversations, strengthen the doula-client relationship, and guide families through the most pressing topics related to pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. What’s Inside the My Doula Visit Workbook? A 115-page, full-color, spiral-bound workbook packed with evidence-based resources Structured guides for up to six prenatal visits + one postpartum check-in (but fully customizable to your practice!) 18 official EBB handouts, birth plan templates,...
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EBB 377 - Medicaid Coverage for Doula Care with Amy Chen, Senior Attorney at the National Health Law Program
Evidence Based Birth®
What if everyone had access to a doula, no matter their income? In this episode, Dr. Dekker talks with Amy Chen, Senior Attorney at the National Health Law Program (NHeLP), about the growing movement to make doula care accessible through Medicaid and insurance coverage. Amy shares how her personal birth experiences inspired her work advocating for Medicaid reimbursement for doulas and explains how more than 20 states (and counting) are now implementing or expanding coverage. They also unpack the biggest challenges and successes so far, from sustainable reimbursement rates and...
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EBB 376 - How to Find and Interview a Doula with Team EBB Members Julie Fors and Chanté Perryman
Evidence Based Birth®
Hiring a doula can be one of the most impactful choices you make during pregnancy, but how do you actually find the right one? In this episode, Dr. Rebecca Dekker talks with Team EBB members and experienced doulas, Julie Fors and Chanté Perryman, to share insider tips on finding and interviewing a doula with confidence. Julie and Chanté walk you through where to begin your search, the most important questions to ask, and how to know if a doula’s personality and philosophy are the right fit for you and your partner. They also tackle misconceptions about doula work, explain...
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REPLAY: EBB 218 – The Evidence on Perineal Massage during Labor with Dr. Rebecca Dekker
Evidence Based Birth®
Can perineal massage during the pushing phase of labor really prevent tears? In this episode, Dr. Rebecca Dekker takes a close look at the research to uncover whether this technique truly helps reduce perineal trauma during childbirth. She explains how health care staff provide perineal massage during labor, breaks down findings findings from key studies and meta-analyses, and examines how biases and variations in clinical practice shape the evidence. Dr. Dekker also explores why results from settings with high episiotomy rates may not apply everywhere and why skilled, supportive care and...
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EBB 375 - A Rainbow Baby and Preeclampsia Birth Story with Dr. Sara Ailshire and Dr. Siavash Samei
Evidence Based Birth®
Dr. Sara Ailshire, an anthropologist and Evidence Based Birth® Research Team member, and her husband, Dr. Siavash Samei, an environmental archaeologist, share the story of welcoming their rainbow baby after loss. In this episode, Sara and Siavash open up about navigating miscarriage care in the wake of changing abortion laws in Ohio, the anxiety and hope of pregnancy after loss, and Sara’s experience with developing preeclampsia near the end of her pregnancy. They describe how they worked with a supportive midwifery team, hired a doula for advocacy and comfort, and ultimately experienced an...
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EBB 374 - Educating the Public about Stillbirth Prevention with Ingrid Haas, Director of the Short Film "PUSH"
Evidence Based Birth®
Filmmaker Ingrid Haas is the writer and director of PUSH, a short film created in partnership with PUSH for Empowered Pregnancy to raise awareness about stillbirth prevention. In this episode, Ingrid shares her personal journey through pregnancy loss, how those experiences led her to advocate for families, and the creative process behind PUSH and the Stillness is an Illness campaign. Together, Ingrid and Dr. Dekker discuss the realities of stillbirth, the importance of listening to families’ concerns, why fetal movement matters, and how storytelling can educate both the public and health...
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Signature Training Announcement - Unpacking New Research on Big Babies
Evidence Based Birth®
What does the newest research on Big Babies say? We’ll be unpacking it all during our live 90-minute Signature Training + Q & A on Wednesday, October 15 at 7 PM EDT, exclusively for EBB Pro Members. In this session (1.5 contact hours), we’ll walk you through the latest evidence, address common questions, and bring clarity to this ginormous issue in birth. You’ll also get the chance to ask your biggest questions and hear directly from Dr. Rebecca Dekker and the EBB Research Team. Join us for just $29 and get 30 days of full access to everything the EBB Pro Membership...
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EBB 2 - What is Evidence Based Care?
Evidence Based Birth®
Evidence based care is a term you hear often in medicine, but what does it really mean—especially when it comes to pregnancy and birth? In this episode, Dr. Rebecca Dekker takes you inside the foundations of Evidence Based Birth®, explaining what evidence based care is (and isn’t), and why it matters for families, providers, and communities. Dr. Dekker breaks down the three essential pillars of evidence based care: the best available research, the provider’s expertise, and the birthing person’s values and preferences. She explores how care can drift away from this model when...
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EBB 373 - How to Confront Tokophobia and Clear Fears about Childbirth with Alexia Leachman, Author and Podcast Host of "Fear Free Childbirth"
Evidence Based Birth®
For some, the thought of pregnancy and birth fills them with a visceral panic they can’t explain. In this episode, Dr. Rebecca Dekker's talking tokophobia—the fear of pregnancy and birth—with Alexia Leachman, founder of Fearless Birthing and host of the Fear Free Childbirth Podcast. Alexia shares her personal journey of discovering and healing her own tokophobia, how she developed her unique “Head Trash Clearance” method, and why tokophobia is often misunderstood as simple anxiety. She explains the root causes of this condition, including reproductive trauma and lack of control,...
info_outlineIn today’s episode, I’m revisiting a deeply important conversation with Tania Silva Meléndez and Tamara Trinidad González, two inspiring birth workers and Evidence Based Birth®
Instructors based in Puerto Rico.
(03:03) Midwifery Leadership and Collaboration
(07:27) Journey to Home Birth Choices
(12:32) Puerto Rico Birth Control Campaign Impact
(13:57) Obstetric Violence and Doula Integration
(17:36) Midwife-Doctor Collaborative Care Solutions
(20:04) Hospital System Communication Challenges
(23:48) Puerto Rico: A Modern Colony
(27:46) Puerto Rico Investment Gentrification Issue
(33:30) Community-Led Family Support Initiative
(34:50) Youth Engagement Through Visual Education
(38:46) Puerto Rico Midwives Day Law
(44:14) Birth Summit Collaboration in Puerto Rico
(46:05) Midwife-EMT Collaboration Curriculum
(51:19) Puerto Rico Birth Rate & Hospital Crisis
(53:50) Supporting Midwifery and Access in Puerto Rico
- If you are interested in joining with Tania and Tamara and volunteering your time or skills to help them reform the maternal health system in Puerto Rico, they are currently looking for volunteers with experience in law, public relations, funding, data collection, research, and writing. OR if you have resources, or access to connections that could help fund their work, please email puertoricobirthrights@gmail.com.
- Learn more about Caderamen, a nonprofit organization that has a service program that is called SePARE, which offers education and doula services, midwifery services and naturopathic medicine services, social workers, mental health by clicking here.
- Learn more about the Asociación de Parteras of Puerto Rico here.
- Learn more about Alimentación Segura Infantil, a community-based organization born after the impacts of Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 to support breastfeeding and chestfeeding families in their lactation journeys by clicking here.
- Learn more about Observatorio de Violencia Obstétrica in Puerto Rico here.
- Learn more about Las Mingas de Aborto, an abortion doula collective that offers free support in Puerto Rico here.
- Check out the work by Puerto Rican journalist Biana Graulau here.
- Read more about the history of Puerto Rico:
For more information about Evidence Based Birth® and a crash course on evidence based care, visit www.ebbirth.com. Follow us on Instagram and YouTube! Ready to learn more? Grab an EBB Podcast Listening Guide or read Dr. Dekker's book, "Babies Are Not Pizzas: They're Born, Not Delivered!" If you want to get involved at EBB, join our Professional membership (scholarship options available) and get on the wait list for our EBB Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the EBB Childbirth Class.