More than two decades of welcoming Boston’s babies.
From one doula with a calling in 2002 to Boston’s first doula agency, a national training program and partnerships with Boston’s leading hospitals.
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2002
The Beginning
Tara Campbell becomes a certified Birth Doula and founds Birthing Gently LLC
Boston’s first doula agency is born.
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2002–2005
Federal Research Study
PACE/LABOR Study, Brigham and Women’s Hospital & Massachusetts General Hospital
Tara serves as a Birth Doula for this four-year, federally funded, multi-center randomized controlled trial led by Dr. Ellice Lieberman, investigating epidural-related intrapartum fever in mothers and newborns. Findings published in Acute Histologic Chorioamnionitis at Term: Nearly Always Noninfectious.
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2002–2014
Perinatal Educator, Isis Parenting, Boston
Tara teaches classes on pregnancy, birth and early parenting.
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2004
Tara becomes a Childbirth Educator with Lamaze International
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2004–2005
Birth Doula Educator, Northern Essex Community College
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2005
Trained under Penny Simkin
Tara becomes a Birth Doula Trainer with DONA International
Trained directly under DONA International co-founder Penny Simkin.
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2006
Specialty focus on high-risk birth, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Birthing Gently works closely with the hospital’s Maternal-Fetal Medicine practice.
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2006–2015
Destination Maternity flagship locations, Boston, CT and NYC
Childbirth Education and Birth Doula training.
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2006–2020
Birth Doula Trainer, BirthRoots, Portland ME
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2007–2021
Birthwise Midwifery School, Bridgton ME
Birth Doula training for midwifery students.
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2011–2018
Harvard University
Instructor, Human Evolution, Locomotion, and Pelvic Morphology
Tara presents “The Doula’s Role in Birth: A Personal Journey” as part of the Harvard course.
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2012–2018
Community education at “Imagine That,” Lawrence MA
A hospital baby nursery station teaching young children newborn care, bathing, diapering, sleep safety and car seat safety.
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2014–2024
800+ patients
BGMH Community Doula Program, Mass General Brigham
With the Midwifery Practice at Massachusetts General Hospital, volunteer Birth Doula support for more than 800 low-income and at-risk patients.
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2014–2024
National expansion
Locations opened in NYC, Hartford CT, Charlotte NC, New Orleans LA, Tucson AZ, West Palm Beach FL and Philadelphia PA.
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2014
Instructor, Newport VT hospital
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2014–2021
Instructor, Springfield Hospital, Springfield VT
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2015
International Doula Meeting, São Paulo, Brazil
At Santa Joana Hospital, sharing up-to-date labor and birth techniques with staff and local doulas.
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2015
Guest speaker, Massachusetts Medical Society
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2015
Published
Co-contributor, Round the Circle: Doulas Share Their Experiences
Tara contributes to this collection of doula stories by Julie Brill, CCCE, CLD.
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2016
Giving Back
Running for Boston Children’s Hospital
Tara ran the Boston Run to Remember half marathon with the Boston Children’s Hospital team, in honor of all Birthing Gently clients and her own children who have been cared for there.
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2017–2021
Tufts Medical School TOPS program
Teaching medical students about the impact of Birth Doulas in maternity care.
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2019
Harvard Medical School
Instructor, MOMS (Medical Students Offering Maternal Support)
A student-founded community health program for first-year Harvard Medical School students.
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2021
Enon’s Doula Ministry, Philadelphia
Growing the community doula population and providing tuition assistance for new Birth Doulas.
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2021–2026
Mass General Brigham United Against Racism Birth Partners
Nine grant-funded contracts providing Birth Doula support to more than 200 patients.
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2022–2023
BOSSGIRLS program
A positive virtual support group for teens focused on self-care and well-being.
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2023
Newton-Wellesley Hospital collaboration
With the NWH Patient in Need Fund and domestic violence advocates.
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2023
Youth Doula Initiative launched
In-person birth doula education brought directly into high schools and colleges, opening a pathway into maternal health careers.
Schools include South Portland High School (South Portland, ME), Codman Academy (Dorchester, MA) and Haverhill High School (Haverhill, MA).
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2023–2024
Mass General Brigham community doula training
Training community Birth Doulas to support Black birthing patients across MGB hospitals through the United Against Racism project.
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2024
Megi-Health High-Risk Doula Certification
Instruction for Megi-Health’s High-Risk Doula Certification program.
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2025
Birthing Gently Doula Collective launched
Serving MassHealth families across all Massachusetts hospitals.
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2025
Current
Tara appointed Director of Certification, DONA International
Leading certification for the world’s leading doula organization.
“You don’t know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.”
Tara Campbell, Founder
“You don’t know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.”About Tara
Tara Campbell is a certified Birth Doula (2001), a Birth Doula Trainer with DONA International (2006) and a Childbirth Educator through Lamaze International (2003). She founded Birthing Gently in 2002, led the Birthing Gently Maternal Health Community Doula Program (BGMH) from 2013 to 2025, and launched the MassHealth Doula Collective in 2025. She has trained thousands of birth doulas since 2006 and serves as the Director of Certification for DONA International.
She works as an adolescent and cesarean section educator with obstetrical patients at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and teaches DONA International Birth Doula workshops. She works closely with the Birthing Gently team and manages daily administrative tasks.
Tara takes high-risk clients on a limited basis. She also accepts high-profile clients who need an added layer of discretion, autonomy and confidentiality, and has worked with celebrities, professional athletes, executives, community leaders and public officials.
Areas of focusTara’s main area of interest is Maternal-Fetal Medicine and high-risk OB/GYN patients at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, including:
We must give our clients the unbiased tools they need to make informed, evidence-based decisions about their care, so they can enter labor with a clear, educated and open mind. Everyone, whether they choose an unmedicated, medicated or cesarean birth, needs our support and quality care.
Tara’s style is a bit more direct and no-nonsense. She will help you focus, redirect and adapt as birth unfolds. You are in control more than you know. Don’t let fear be the roadblock! Working with certain providers, she has been at the forefront of bringing the Family Centered Cesarean approach to her clients.
Tara built her knowledge working in antepartum, the newborn nursery, the OR, post-op, pediatrics, the emergency department and postpartum. It wasn’t long before she realized that “home” was the labor and delivery unit, and that passion set her on the doula path. She has also been a childbirth educator in hospitals, private institutions and federally funded community programs, with a focus on curriculum for teens and families expecting multiples.
Family & life outside birthTara has five children, Evian (1996), Shelby (2002), Kendal (2003), Hailee (2006) and Katheryn (2009), and one grandson (2025). She didn’t have a doula at her first two deliveries, but did at her third, fourth and fifth, which were scheduled cesareans. The difference amazed her: far less anxiety, greater birth satisfaction and an easier recovery.
In her spare time, Tara enjoys time with her family, hiking and paddleboarding with her cockapoo Bubbles, skiing, running, and drag racing her Dodge Challenger SRT in the quarter mile. She is co-administrator of the East Coast Challenger Car Club and loves all things motorsports.
Book a consultationCertifications
- Advanced Certified Birth Doula, DONA International
- Postpartum Doula
- Birth Doula Trainer, DONA International
- Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator (LCCE)
- Approved Carrot Fertility provider
Leadership
- Director of Certification, DONA International
- Founder, Birthing Gently
- Founder, Birthing Gently Doula Collective for MassHealth families
- Founder, BGMH Community Doula Program, in partnership with Massachusetts General Hospital Midwifery
- Community doula trainer, Mass General Brigham United Against Racism initiative
- Instructor, High Risk Doula Certification, Megi-Health
- Senior advisor, Support Birth, Tucson, AZ
- Creator, BOSSGIRLS virtual teen support group
Teaching
- Adolescent and cesarean educator, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Instructor, Harvard University
- Instructor, Tufts University School of Medicine (TOPS program)
- Faculty, Birthwise Midwifery School, Maine
- Faculty, Birthroot’s, Portland, Maine
- Childbirth educator, Isis Parenting, Boston
- Childbirth educator, Destination Maternity, Boston, Connecticut and New York City
- Birth doula educator, Northern Essex Community College
- Early-childhood community education, Imagine That, Lawrence, MA
Doula trainings for
- Harvard Medical School
- Tufts University School of Medicine
- Maine Medical Center
- Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation
- Haverhill High School
- Enon Tabernacle Doula Ministry, Philadelphia
Speaking
- Massachusetts Medical Society
- Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition
- Kansas City University School of Medicine
- Maine Medical Center
- International Doula Meeting, Santa Joana Hospital, São Paulo, Brazil
Community partnerships & committees
- Newton-Wellesley Hospital Patient in Need Fund and domestic violence advocates
- Boston Children’s Hospital Virtual Committee
- Haverhill High School Healthcare Advisory Committee
- Pentucket Perinatal Mental Health Coalition
- DONA International Certification Committee
- American Heart Association / Boston Children’s Hospital CVDY Committee
Continuing education
- Harvard Medical School: Annual Update in Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Harvard University: Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles
- Harvard University: Leaders of Learning
- Stanford University School of Medicine:
- Spaulding Rehabilitation, Mass General Brigham: Building Provider Capacity for Women with Spinal Cord Injury
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital: Obstetrical Neurology Conference
- Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP): Adolescent Gynecologic Emergencies
- Cape and Islands Maternal Depression Task Force: Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders
- Massachusetts Psychiatric Academy: Psychiatric Disorders in Women: Diagnostic and Treatment Considerations Across the Female Lifespan
- Mercy In Action: Cultural Competency and Respect in the Provision of Maternity Care
- QMED: Black Maternal Health Conference
- DONA International Summits