Client Terms of Use
Last Revised: April 30, 2026
The website and platform located at doula.yourvillages.org (the "Platform") is operated by Thanacare LLC (collectively with its subsidiaries, affiliates, and related entities, "Company," "the Company," "Thanacare," "we," "us," and "our"). These Client Terms of Use (the "Terms") govern your access to and use of the Platform when you participate as a client or family member at the invitation of an independent doula or doula practice (the "Doula") who has subscribed to the Platform.
These Terms include an arbitration clause and a waiver of class actions. Please read the Terms carefully before you start to use the Platform.
By clicking to accept or to agree to the Terms when this option is made available to you, or by using the Platform, you agree and acknowledge on your own behalf (referred to throughout the Terms as "you") that you have read, understand, and agree to be bound by these Terms and to comply with all applicable laws including, without limitation, all federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and directives. If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not use the Platform.
Purpose of the Platform. The Company provides the Platform to support independent doulas in coordinating care, communication, and information sharing with their clients. Your relationship as a client is with the Doula who invited you to the Platform, not with Thanacare. The Doula is responsible for the services provided to you, including any clinical, emotional, or informational support. The Company operates the Platform on behalf of the Doula. Information you provide or that is collected through the Platform is handled in accordance with the Privacy Policy located at doula.yourvillages.org/privacy, which is incorporated by reference into these Terms.
These Terms apply only to doula.yourvillages.org; other products and platform instances operated by the Company are governed by their own separate Terms of Use and Privacy Policies.
Not for Medical Treatment. The Platform is not a place for the practice of medicine. No medical diagnosis, treatment, or prescription is offered through the Platform. All information provided on the Platform or by the Company is intended for informational and care-coordination purposes only, and is in no way intended to create a physician-patient relationship between you and Thanacare. The Platform is not a substitute for professional medical diagnosis, treatment, or advice from a licensed healthcare provider. If you have a medical emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number.
Doulas Are Not Medical Professionals. Doulas provide non-medical support and guidance during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum (or other contexts as described by the Doula). A Doula is not a substitute for a licensed medical provider. Your Doula does not provide medical care or medical advice through the Platform.
HIPAA. Solo doulas are generally not "covered entities" as defined under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended ("HIPAA"). The Platform is not designed for the processing of Protected Health Information ("PHI") as defined under HIPAA, and information you provide directly to the Platform is generally not subject to HIPAA. If your Doula operates under or as part of a HIPAA-covered entity (such as a hospital or health system), the handling of any PHI may be governed by an additional agreement between that covered entity and Thanacare. Please ask your Doula whether such an arrangement applies to you. The Platform may collect health-related information about you that is not PHI; this information is handled in accordance with the Privacy Policy and applicable state privacy law.
Not for Legal Advice. The Company is not a law firm and any information provided by the Company or the Platform is not legal advice. Doulas are also not licensed legal professionals. We always recommend you seek qualified legal counsel in making any final legal decisions or executing legal documents.
Use of the Platform. The Company grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable right to access and use the Platform and the data, material, content, or information herein (collectively, the "Content") solely for the purposes of interacting with your Doula, sharing information with your Doula, and otherwise participating in the care coordination provided by your Doula. Your right to access and use the Platform is limited to lawful and personal purposes. You agree to use the Platform only for lawful purposes and in compliance with all applicable laws.
Account Responsibility. Access to certain features of the Platform may require an account. If you create an account, you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account and password, and for all activities that occur under your account. You agree to notify the Company immediately at support@yourvillages.com of any unauthorized use of your account. The Company is not responsible for any loss that you may incur as a result of any unauthorized person using your account or your password.
Prohibited Uses. You agree that you will not:
- Use the Platform in any manner that could damage, disable, overburden, or impair the Platform or interfere with any other party's use and enjoyment of it;
- Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any account, computer system, or network associated with the Company, your Doula, or the Platform;
- Access, view, or use information about any other person without proper authorization;
- Obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through the Platform by any means not intentionally made available or provided by the Company or your Doula;
- Use any robot, spider, scraper, or other automatic device, process, or means to access, monitor, or copy any of the material on the Platform, including for the purposes of training machine-learning or artificial intelligence systems, except as expressly permitted by the Company in writing;
- Introduce any viruses, Trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful;
- Attack the Platform via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack;
- Bypass or circumvent any access or authentication controls on the Platform;
- Use the Platform to harass, threaten, or harm your Doula, any other user, or any third party; or
- Impersonate or attempt to impersonate the Company, a Company employee, your Doula, or any other person or entity (including, without limitation, by using email addresses associated with any of the foregoing).
Notice and Consent to Receipt of Email and Text Communications. By creating an account or accepting an invitation from a Doula, you consent to receive operational, transactional, and service-oriented email communications from the Company and from your Doula in connection with your use of the Platform, including authentication, account notifications, and messages from your Doula. These communications are necessary for the operation of the Platform.
If you provide a mobile telephone number and consent to text messaging, you may receive text messages from the Platform relating to authentication or messages from your Doula. You may opt out of non-essential text messaging at any time by following the instructions provided in the message or by contacting us at support@yourvillages.com. Message and data rates may apply. The Company will obtain your express written consent before initiating any text messaging service, in accordance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA") and applicable state law.
Third-party Websites. The Platform may contain links to websites controlled or operated by persons and companies other than the Company ("Linked Sites"). Linked Sites are not under the control of the Company, and the Company is not responsible for the contents of any Linked Site, any link contained on a Linked Site, or any changes or updates to a Linked Site. The Company is not responsible if a Linked Site is not working correctly or for any viruses, malware, or other harms resulting from your use of a Linked Site. The Company is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement by the Company of the website or any association with its operators. You are responsible for viewing and abiding by the privacy policies and terms of use posted on Linked Sites.
Third-party Applications. You acknowledge that your access and use of any third-party applications or software on the Platform (the "Third-party Applications") is at your discretion and risk, and the Company has no liability to you arising from your use of the Third-party Applications. The Company hereby disclaims any representation, warranty, or guaranty regarding the Third-party Applications.
Intellectual Property Notices. The Platform and Content are protected by copyrights, trademarks, and other proprietary rights. You are not permitted to use the Platform or Content in any manner, except as expressly permitted by the Company in these Terms. The Platform or Content may not be copied, reproduced, modified, published, uploaded, posted, transmitted, performed, distributed, or used to train artificial intelligence or machine-learning systems in any way, and you agree not to modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute, transmit, broadcast, or create derivatives without the express written consent of the Company or the applicable owner.
Your Content. Any Content you create or provide to the Platform is "Your Content." In sharing Your Content on the Platform, you warrant and represent that you have the legal right to use Your Content and grant the Company a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to use Your Content as necessary to provide the Platform services described in these Terms and in any posted policies on the Platform. The Platform services may require our Company systems to access, store, and process Your Content. You may also share Your Content with your Doula through Platform features, so please consider carefully what you share.
United States Only. The Company is based in the State of Minnesota in the United States. The Company provides the Platform for use only by persons located in the United States and invited to use the Platform by a Doula. We make no claims that the Platform or any of its contents are accessible or appropriate outside of the United States.
Disclaimer. ALL INFORMATION OR SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE COMPANY TO YOU VIA THE PLATFORM, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ALL CONTENT, ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "WHERE IS" AND WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. THE COMPANY AND ITS THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION CONTAINED HEREIN TO THE CONTRARY, THE COMPANY AND ITS THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS MAKE NO REPRESENTATION, WARRANTY, OR COVENANT CONCERNING THE ACCURACY, QUALITY, SUITABILITY, COMPLETENESS, SEQUENCE, TIMELINESS, SECURITY, OR AVAILABILITY OF THE PLATFORM OR ANY CONTENT POSTED ON OR OTHERWISE ACCESSIBLE VIA THE PLATFORM. YOU SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE COMPANY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONDUCT OF YOUR DOULA OR FOR ANY ADVICE, GUIDANCE, OR SUPPORT YOUR DOULA PROVIDES TO YOU. NEITHER THE COMPANY NOR ANY OF ITS THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS REPRESENT, WARRANT, OR COVENANT THAT THE PLATFORM WILL BE SECURE, UNINTERRUPTED, OR ERROR-FREE. THE COMPANY FURTHER MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT THE PLATFORM WILL BE FREE OF VIRUSES, WORMS, OR TROJAN HORSES OR THAT IT WILL FUNCTION OR OPERATE IN CONJUNCTION WITH ANY OTHER PRODUCT OR SOFTWARE. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT USE OF THE PLATFORM IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK AND THAT THE COMPANY, ITS AFFILIATES, AND THEIR THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS SHALL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY TERMINATION, INTERRUPTION OF SERVICES, DELAYS, ERRORS, FAILURES OF PERFORMANCE, DEFECTS, LINE FAILURES, OR OMISSIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PLATFORM OR YOUR USE THEREOF. YOUR SOLE REMEDY AGAINST THE COMPANY FOR DISSATISFACTION WITH THE PLATFORM OR THE CONTENT IS TO CEASE YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM AND/OR THE CONTENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT PERMIT THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. YOU MAY HAVE OTHER RIGHTS, WHICH VARY BY JURISDICTION. WHEN THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE EXCLUDED IN THEIR ENTIRETY, YOU AGREE THAT THEY WILL BE LIMITED TO THE GREATEST EXTENT AND SHORTEST DURATION PERMITTED BY LAW.
Limitation of Liability. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL THE COMPANY OR ANY OF ITS THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS BE LIABLE TO YOU OR TO ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF INFORMATION, TRANSACTION LOSSES, OPPORTUNITY COSTS, INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS, OR COSTS OF PROCURING SUBSTITUTE GOODS) RESULTING FROM, ARISING OUT OF, OR IN ANY WAY RELATING TO THE PLATFORM, OR THE DATA, CONTENT, OR INFORMATION ACCESSED VIA THE PLATFORM OR ANY HYPERLINKED WEBSITE, OR ANY DISRUPTION OR DELAY IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THE PLATFORM, OR THE CONDUCT OF YOUR DOULA, REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE CLAIM OR ACTION, WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY, STATUTE, OR OTHERWISE, AND REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT SUCH DAMAGES WERE FORESEEN, UNFORESEEN, OR FORESEEABLE, EVEN IF THE COMPANY OR ITS THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THE TOTAL LIABILITY OF THE COMPANY AND ITS THIRD-PARTY LICENSORS TO YOU FOR ANY AND ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM WILL NOT EXCEED ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS ($100). NOTHING IN THESE TERMS LIMITS OR EXCLUDES LIABILITY THAT CANNOT BE LIMITED OR EXCLUDED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.
Indemnity. You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Company and its affiliates, licensors, and service providers from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to your violation of these Terms or your use of the Platform, including, but not limited to, any use of the Platform Content, services, or products other than as expressly authorized in these Terms or your use of any information obtained from the Platform.
Termination and Restriction of Access. In its sole discretion, the Company may terminate or suspend your access to the Platform for breach of these Terms, at the direction of your Doula, or for any other reason. The Company shall not be liable for any losses or damages arising from any such termination of service.
Arbitration. Before filing any claim against the Company, you agree to first contact the Company at support@yourvillages.com with a written description of the dispute, and the parties will attempt to resolve the dispute informally for at least thirty (30) days before any formal proceeding. If the parties are unable to resolve the dispute through informal discussions, any and all disputes arising from use of the Platform, or breach of these Terms, including disputes arising from or concerning their interpretation, violation, invalidity, non-performance, or termination, shall be resolved by final and binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, applying Minnesota law. The arbitration will be conducted by a single arbitrator in Hennepin County, Minnesota, or by video or telephone, at the election of the party initiating the arbitration. Judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. This arbitration agreement is mutual and applies to claims by you against the Company and claims by the Company against you. You and the Company agree that any dispute resolution proceeding will be conducted only on an individual basis and not in a class, consolidated, or representative action. If for any reason a claim proceeds in court rather than in arbitration, you and the Company each waive any right to a jury trial. Either party may bring an individual action in small-claims court if the dispute is within that court's jurisdiction, and either party may seek injunctive or other equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction to protect intellectual property or confidential information. You may opt out of this arbitration agreement by sending written notice to support@yourvillages.com within thirty (30) days of first agreeing to these Terms; your notice must include your full name, the email address you used to interact with the Platform, and a statement that you wish to opt out of arbitration.
Limitation on Time to File Claims. Any cause of action or claim you may have arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Platform must be commenced within one (1) year after the cause of action accrues; otherwise, such cause of action or claim is permanently barred.
Governing Law and Jurisdiction. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Minnesota, U.S.A. Subject to the arbitration provisions above, you irrevocably consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the courts in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A. in all disputes arising out of or relating to the use of the Platform.
Changes to these Terms. The Company may update or change these Terms from time to time in order to reflect changes in any offered services, changes in the law, or for other reasons as deemed necessary by the Company. The effective date of any Terms will be reflected in the "Last Revised" entry at the top of these Terms. Your continued use of the Platform after any such change is communicated, or when you click to accept or to agree to the Terms when this option is made available to you, shall constitute your consent to such change(s).
General. You agree that no joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship exists between you and the Company as a result of these Terms or use of the Platform. You may not assign these Terms without the prior written consent of the Company. The Company may assign these Terms, in whole or in part, at any time. The Company's performance of these Terms is subject to existing laws and legal process.
If any part of these Terms is determined to be invalid or unenforceable pursuant to applicable law, the invalid or unenforceable provision will be deemed superseded by a valid, enforceable provision that most closely matches the intent of the original provision, and the remainder of these Terms shall continue in effect.
These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and the Company with respect to your use of the Platform.
Contact Information. Questions can be directed to the Company at support@yourvillages.com.