By employing the services of Root & Cradle, LLC, the Client affirms that they have had the opportunity to ask questions, seek clarification, and fully understand the nature of the services provided by the Doula. The client acknowledges that the decision to hire a doula is voluntary and that the services provided by the Doula are separate and distinct form medical care provide by healthcare professionals.

Root & Cradle, LLC agrees to provide postpartum doula services for emotional, physical and informational support to the client up to the first 12 weeks of the postpartum period as described further in this contract by helping them develop confidence in their innate parenting abilities and easing the transition of adding a new baby to the family. The client understands and acknowledges that the Postpartum Doula is not a medical professional and does not provide medical advice, diagnose medical conditions, or perform medical procedures. The doula's role is to offer guidance, assistance, and advocacy.

Root & Cradle, LLC, a Postpartum doula company, offers services within a Postpartum Doula works with each family individually to find out their particular needs. Some of the postpartum services that a doula can perform include: 

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1. Breastfeeding support 

2. Help with the emotional and physical recovery after birth

3. Light housekeeping, including washing baby clothes & light straightening. This excludes any deep cleaning, washing of family dishes, laundering or adult clothing. 

4. Running errands 

5. Assistance with newborn care such as diapering, bathing, feeding and comforting 

6. Light meal preparation 

7. Baby soothing techniques 

8. Sibling care 

9. Referrals to local resources such as but not limited to parenting classes, pediatricians, lactation support and other parenting support groups 

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Overnight doulas prioritize sleeping and feeding routines for the newborn and parents. Root & Cradle, LLC provides "awake care" at an additional rate outlined below. If the Client does not hire the Postpartum Doula for awake care services, once their tasks are complete, they will sleep when the baby sleeps. If the contracted doula is unable to offer a service listed above, they will offer referrals to outsource for assistance (i.e. a lactation consultant, sibling care doula, or twin doula) paid for by the client. 

A Postpartum Doula provides evidenced based information on things such as infant feeding, emotional and physical recovery from birth, mother – baby bonding, infant soothing, and basic newborn care. The Postpartum Doula is there to help a new family in those first days and weeks after bringing home a new baby. A Postpartum Doula is not a housekeeper, nor a medical practitioner and will not perform any clinical procedures, outside of weighing the baby and assisting with breastfeeding and breastfeeding education. A Postpartum Doula does not assess for recovery of vaginal tears or cesarean incision recovery of the mother although she may provide traditional methods of helping the mother recover from birth, whether cesarean or vaginal, and will observe for signs of infection and/or postpartum depression, educating the mother on signs and symptoms regarding these issues. A Postpartum Doula may provide information for the new mother's partner in order to assist in observation for signs of infection and/or postpartum depression 

Clients are required to always be present in the home while the Postpartum Doula is present.​

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Clients are responsible for providing all tools and supplies they wish to use during their recovery, such as a sitz bath, infant carrier (wrap, sling, etc.), breast/chest pump, food and beverages, diapers, peri rinse bottles, etc. The Client is responsible for paying in advance for all errands run and purchases made by the Postpartum Doula for the Client.​

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The Client will provide a flat surface (i.e. a bed, sofa, or padded reclining seat) for the Postpartum Doula to sleep when baby is asleep. The floor id not an acceptable sleep surface. The surface will either be in the same room with the baby, or the Client will provide a monitor so that the Postpartum Doula can hear the baby stirring and attend to the baby.

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If there is a change of address of the Client's home, the Client must inform the Postpartum Doula as soon as possible. A change of address of Client's home or location of services outside of the service area may mean the Doula is unable to complete the contract and will assist the Client in finding an adequate replacement. The Client will not receive a refund of the non- refundable deposit if their new location is outside of the service radius.

The Client may specify the total number of contract hours booked as 8 to 10 hour overnight shifts. Overnight shifts can begin as early as 9pm and end by 9pm. ​

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Package fees and Client's spot on the Doula's calendar are locked in for 2 weeks from the date this contract was sent to the Client by email. There are no guarantees of price or availability beyond this date without a signed contract and the first Base Fee installment Retainer payment of 50%.

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The Client will work closely with the Postpartum Doula to schedule postpartum doula shifts. 

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If the doula is unable to be with the Client due to illness or exposure to a highly contagious diseases in the Client or Doula's home, or any unforeseen circumstances hinder the doula's arrival, or the Client's requested shift falls on one of the Doula's contract holidays, the client may elect to reschedule the shift or request that the doula provide a backup doula. The client is entitled to decline backup, but doing so does not entitle the client to a refund of doula fees. 

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The Client may elect to reschedule shifts so long as they are within the Contract Period. Shifts not rescheduled within the Contract Period are not refundable. 

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Root & Cradle, LLC postpartum doulas commonly work weekends and during dangerous weather and often miss important personal and family events. Root & Cradle, LLC reserves some dates out of the year for "can't miss" occasions such as family members birthdays, anniversaries, vacations, graduations, major holidays, etc. which are known as "Contract Holidays". The doula may need to add Contract Holidays due to unforeseen circumstances, such as funerals, that were not known at the time of contract signing. Such dates will be communicated to the Client as soon as possible and the Client reserves the right to request a backup doula or to reschedule the shift so long as the rescheduled shift is within the contract period.

The Client is responsible for providing safe and convenient parking for the Doula, including all parking fees. The Client agrees to pay all fees required for the Doula to park safely within a reasonable distance (not more than 3 city blocks or 1200sq ft) of the Client's home/location of postpartum services. In the event that parking is not available within this radius, the Client agrees to pay for taxi or ride share costs incurred by the Doula.

Our agreed upon fee structure is as follows $ 60.00 per hour at a maximum amount of 4 days, or 40 hours, per week. $ 100.00 per hour for awake care at a maximum amount of 2 days, or 20 hours, per week. The Postpartum Doula's minimum hours per day is 8 hours.

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At any time, extra days may be added at the hourly ala carte rate, and The Postpartum Doula will try to be flexible to allow for this. There is a 50% deposit due at the time of signing this contract. This is a non-refundable retainer. The second 50% of payment for services is due 48 hours before the Postpartum Doulas first shift. Failure to pay the second installment will be considered a termination of the contract and no additional services will be provided until the fee is paid. 

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​If mother/partner decides to contract the Postpartum Doula for more hours after the completion of this contract, she may do so pending the Postpartum Doulas availability. This may occur once the contract payment is satisfied and be paid based on the ala carte pricing and invoicing structure and be subjected to a new contractual agreement

At the discretion of Root & Cradle LLC, a refund of 25% of the 2nd installment will be offered in the event the Doula has committed unsafe or irresponsible acts while on shift for the Client (i.e. arriving under the influence, leaving the baby unattended in an unsafe area, etc.) 

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No refunds will be offered for the following: 

1. The Doula missed a scheduled shift due to reasons beyond their control, i.e. illness, dangerous weather, impassible traffic changes, acts of God 

2. The Client's location was inaccessible to the Doula (ex. an emergency at the Client's location prevented public access) 

3. The Client did not schedule all available hours within the allotted 12-week period, regardless of reason d. The Doula was unable to attend the shift and the Client declined back up and declined to reschedule e. the Client failed to inform the Doula prior to a shift of exposure to/diagnosis of/symptoms of a highly contagious illness of anyone in the home 

4. The Contract was terminated by Root & Cradle, LLC for reasons including, but not limited to, those listed below in the termination section of this page. 

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When a refund is due, the Client will receive a refund form to complete. Once completed, the Client will be released of any further obligation and Root & Cradle, LLC will process the refund. Refunds can take up to 7-10 business days to process through the bank, once initiated.

1. Single Shift Cancellations by Client 

- Client must provide at least 12 hours’ notice to cancel a single scheduled shift. 

- Notice shorter than 12 hours will only be accepted in cases of illness, death, or family emergency. If notice of cancellation is given less than 12 hours in advance, the shift cannot be made up. If only one shift is canceled with proper notice, the client may request a make-up shift to be scheduled before the baby reaches 12 weeks of age, completed by either the contracted doula or appropriate backup, subject to doula availability. 

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2. Termination of Entire Contract by Client

- Client can terminate this contract for any reason 

- Client must provide at least three (3) days’ written notice to businesswithbrandim@gmail.com to terminate the contract. 

- No refund will be issued in the event the Client chooses to terminate the contract. 

3. Cancellations by Doula (Single Shifts) 

- Doula may cancel a shift in cases of illness, death, dangerous weather conditions, family emergencies, or other instances outside of their control. In such cases, doula will make reasonable efforts to: Reschedule the shift for a mutually agreeable time, or 

Arrange coverage by a qualified back-up doula. If the Client prefers to not make up the shift, the doula shift will be forfeited, and no refund will be issued. 

4. Termination of Entire Contract by Doula 

- Doula reserves the right to terminate the contract immediately for any of the following reasons: Inappropriate, unsafe, or abusive behavior by the client or household members. 

- Unsafe or unsanitary environment, such as consistent hazards (e.g., toys or objects obstructing safe baby care areas, lack of hygiene in sleeping/care spaces). 

- Harassment or discrimination of any kind, including those based on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or political ideology. 

- Substance abuse or unsafe use of drugs or alcohol in the home during care hours. 

- Failure to provide a safe sleep space for the infant (e.g., no safe crib/bassinet meeting sleep guidelines). 

In these instances, no refund will be provided. 

Root & Cradle, LLC postpartum doulas are not medical professionals and therefore cannot and will not provide the Client with medical care or advice. As an express condition of the performance of services under this agreement, the Client agrees, on their own behalf and on behalf of all persons or entities they may bind under Maryland law to waive and hereby do waive any rights, claims or causes of action that they may have against Brandi McCall and Root & Cradle, LLC or any agent or independent contractor hired by Root & Cradle, LLC to provide primary or backup services now and in the future with respect to their pregnancy, birth, postpartum period or the services Root & Cradle may provide or fail to provide them.

Agreements signed are made under and shall be construed according to the laws of the State of Maryland. In the event that this agreement is breached, any and all disputes must be settled in a court of competent jurisdiction in the State of Maryland. In the event any fees owed under this agreement are not paid, or if collection action has to be undertaken to collect incurred by Root & Cradle, LLC in collecting or enforcing this agreement, including without limitation, reasonable attorneys' fees and expenses actually incurred.