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Connections
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
Connections

Making doulas available to more mothers

By Evan Dawson,
Elissa Orlando, Julie Williams
Published September 22, 2025 at 3:43 PM EDT
Four people wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a woman front left has long dark hair and is wearing a bright blue dress and black heels: a man front right has short dark hair and is wearing a light blue button-down shirt, puffy navy vest, jeans and sneakers; a woman back left has short dark hair and is wearing glasses, a silver necklace and a sleeveless black top; a woman back right has short grey hair and is wearing glasses and an orange sleeveless top.
1 of 2  — (foreground) Jacqui Lindsay, (background) Twylla Dillion and Phyllis Sharp with host Evan Dawson on "Connections"
(foreground) Jacqui Lindsay, (background) Twylla Dillion and Phyllis Sharp with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Monday, September 22, 2025
Mary Hussong-Kallen / WXXI News
A smiling woman with curly black hair with her arms crossed in front of her chest. She is wearing a gold necklace, a pink top, and a blue blazer.
2 of 2  — Samra Brouk 4-3.jpg
Samra Brouk
Provided
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
WXXI News

A growing number of American births involve doulas in the delivery room. And yet for some, the notion of a doula is expensive, maybe unaffordable -- the kind of thing that wealthier moms have.

A coalition is trying to change that, and they have the support of State Senator Samra Brouk. We'll discuss the movement to make doula care more sustainable and available.

Our guests:

Connections
Evan Dawson
Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
See stories by Evan Dawson
Elissa Orlando
Elissa Orlando is a producer for “Connections with Evan Dawson.” She returns part-time to WXXI News after stepping back from a long career in public media and in translational science.
See stories by Elissa Orlando
Julie Williams
Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.
See stories by Julie Williams