Maternal health in our community and across our nation is in crisis. The women in our communities are the answer.
Every state in this country is failing mothers and babies in ways that don’t have to be true. We didn’t wait to be saved. We decided here to do something. We trained ourselves, showed up for each other, and built a network strong enough to change outcomes. The evidence behind doula care is overwhelming, and every family deserves it. That is why Mary’s Hands Network exists. Community supporting community, one birth at a time.
How Mary's Hands came to be.
A short history.
Mary's Hands Network was founded as a Louisiana 501(c)(3) in March 2023. Our first cohort of ICEA-track doulas trained that June. By 2024 the volunteer network had expanded to all five Louisiana healthcare regions, and the postpartum visit protocol was formalized.
In 2025 we partnered with Baton Rouge General Medical Center and opened IRB Protocol #2025-001, tracking every birth outcome under formal research conditions.
Today, 254 doulas have trained with us; 450+ Louisiana families have been served; and our published outcomes show a 65% reduction in cesareans and 84% reduction in preterm births among MHN clients. The Rho Cohort opens at FranU St. Francis Hall in late July 2026.
Why we are named for Mary of the Visitation.
In the Christian tradition, a teenage Mary travels to the hill country to visit her cousin Elizabeth during Elizabeth's pregnancy. She stays for three months. The gospel records no advice and no intervention. Only presence.
The Greek word doulé (δουλη) means “a woman who serves.” That is the first doula in written history, and she is our inspiration. Every volunteer who trains with us is carrying on a two-thousand-year-old practice of accompaniment.
“We doula like the original doula. Continuity, presence, showing up. That is the work.”
Where we serve.
MHN doulas serve families in all five Louisiana healthcare regions, with the highest concentration in the Greater Baton Rouge and New Orleans metro areas, and growing networks in Lafayette, Shreveport, and Lake Charles. Expecting in Louisiana? You are eligible to apply for free doula support, regardless of income, insurance, or location.
Louisiana ranks among the worst U.S. states for maternal and infant health.
Our maternal mortality rate is nearly twice the national average. Black women face a mortality risk three to four times higher than white women. Preterm birth and cesarean rates exceed national norms. These are not abstract statistics. They are the families our doulas walk alongside.
The research is also clear: continuous doula support reduces cesareans, lowers preterm birth, improves breastfeeding initiation, and increases parental satisfaction. Every birth, regardless of income, background, or zip code, deserves this care.
This is the gap Mary's Hands Network was built to address.
Built one cohort, one family, one birth at a time.
Our staff, our cohorts, our families, our community.
A working board, a grounded staff.
Mary's Hands Network is governed by a working board of clinicians, healthcare leaders, attorneys, and finance professionals, and run day-to-day by a staff team rooted in the Louisiana communities we serve.