Job: Health care specialist at Hennepin County Medical Center and private doula

Salary range: I have an hourly wage at HCMC. But a private contractor (which most doulas are) starting out in the Twin Cites probably makes around $200 to $250 per birth. That can go up pretty dramatically with experience to $1,000 and up. An average fee would be $500 to $700.

Education: Bachelor's in global studies and Spanish from the University of Minnesota. I'm in the process of being certified by DONA (Doulas of North America) International. I'm also completing the prerequisite courses for a master's in nursing program at the U.

What is a doula? It's a Greek word that means "servant." Traditionally, the person who'd attend a birth with a woman would be her most trusted servant. Today it's used to describe a labor-support person. The job of a doula is to "mother the mother" during labor and delivery. Our main focus is on keeping mom physically comfortable and emotionally in a good place so that she can make good progress and remain as happy and calm as possible during her labor. A doula doesn't do anything medical. But with the information a midwife gives us, we can make decisions about trying different positions, or try to determine what's holding up a mom's progress.

What attracted you to the field? My career goal is to become a midwife. I first found out about doulas when I came back from studying abroad in Ecuador in 2007. I had been working with an obstetrician at a hospital in Ecuador. I was really interested in exploring a different way of caring for women during pregnancy and labor, something a little more gentle and alternative. I met with a midwife here in the Twin Cities and she suggested I look into becoming a doula as a first step to becoming more experienced in the field and to attend some births.

What was the first birth you attended like? My first birth was really wonderful. It was a home birth. The birth lasted about 25 hours, so I got to spend a lot of time with mom, her family and her kids. She wanted to have a water birth, so once she got in the water and the birth was more imminent, I ended up behind her with my arms around her, on my knees, in a really awkward position, so that in between contractions she would rest her head in the crook of my neck. It was very physically draining, but I had so much adrenaline going that it didn't matter.

How did you get your current job at HCMC? I was looking for a way to gain more experience but have the job fit more with my school schedule. I heard about the doula program at HCMC through one of the midwives I was working with.

What keeps you motivated? Knowing that the outcome is hopefully a healthy mom and a healthy baby is really wonderful. One of the best things that doulas do is empower mom to trust her body and to avoid some of the intervention that might happen if she didn't have someone there helping her and advocating for her. Babies that are born without a lot of intervention and medication come out so much calmer and more at ease and ready to nurse ... and ready for the world.

HILARY BRUECK