This project aims to build a new multidisciplinary, community-engaged research team to co-design a doula-assisted intervention that reduces tobacco and cannabis use during pregnancy. It emphasizes collaboration between researchers, community doulas, and individuals with lived experience to ensure culturally responsive, harm-reduction–focused intervention development.

Specific Aims:

  1. To develop a new multidisciplinary team of academic researchers, community doulas, and individuals with lived experience.
  2. To conduct listening sessions that inform the co-design of a doula-assisted intervention, including content and delivery strategies.

The team integrates expertise in maternal health, substance use, behavioral interventions, biostatistics, and community-based doula care, alongside lived experience perspectives.

Team Building Activities include:

  • Pre-planning an in-person workshop at Cornerstone offices in Oakland, CA, to develop a new team: Includes a half-day virtual kickoff meeting to identify and recruit community doulas and individuals with lived experience, followed by a full-day in-person workshop to establish the team and begin discussing intervention design.
  • Meet in-person and conduct a listening session to gain feedback on the co-design of the doula-assisted intervention content and delivery: A 90-minute listening session is held during the in-person workshop to gather stakeholder input on intervention design, followed by a virtual meeting to synthesize findings and plan next steps.