Immerse yourself in a foreign culture while gaining hands-on midwifery skills and knowledge. Our 10-week Midwifery Intensives are open to students of all levels but are intended for entry-level and intermediate students. Participants will be assigned clinical rotations in the hospital, clinic and domestic environments and complimented by case reviews and group-lead book studies. Intensives are designed to help students explore midwifery stewardship, community development and women-centered advocacy.
Cameroon, West Africa July 5 – September 13
The 10-week intensive in Cameroon provides participants with the opportunity to understand the current state of maternal healthcare in this West African country, while forging a path for the Midwives Model of Care. Aiming to understand different birth contexts, participants will have clinical rotations in a locally-run birth clinic that sees an average of 35 births per month, in addition to conducting breastfeeding awareness campaigns for the local community and working as part of the birth support team in the public hospital. The Midwives Model of Care is new to this region, and participants will also have the unique opportunity to work alongside their preceptors to implement a new training for traditional birth attendants (TBAs) who are eager to learn. Our clinical partner, Maternal and Child Aid Cameroon, is committed to reducing maternal and infant mortality in the rural communities of Cameroon through research, advocacy, outreach programs and community-driven intervention programs, and will host participants for the duration of the program. Intensive book study throughout the duration of the program will provide the framework in which participants analyze the models they see at work.
This intensive will be lead by two preceptors. Jacky Bloemraad-de Boer, a South African-born, Amsterdam-trained midwife and member of the Midwife International advisory board, who has seen success training TBAs in her home country. Students will work alongside Jacky to replicate this exciting program, and will continue their efforts alongside their second preceptor, Anita Tupper, a United States-based midwife who has experience training midwives in Guatemala. Participants will also work with Ngala Elvis Mbiydzenyuy, a Cameroonian-born and based writer, poet, medical researcher and rural maternal health advocate, who founded Maternal and Child Aid Cameroon, to build awareness and knowledge in the community about breastfeeding.
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Textbooks: A Book for Midwives by Susan Klein; Breastfeeding Answers Made Simple by Nancy Mohrbacher; Practical Skills for Midwives by Pam Weaver and Sharon Evans
