“See one, do one, teach one,” is a philosophy guiding labor and delivery nurse Jenna Ricks-Cosens, MSN, RN.  

She was among a group of five Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center team members who traveled to Sierra Leone earlier this year to train local health care providers. Among them was another nurse, a midwife, and two physicians. Roseville nurse leaders sponsored the cost of the trip’s teaching materials.

The Kaiser Permanente care team was led by Joanie Seacrist, CNM, a Roseville certified nurse midwife and founder of Hawa’s Hope, an organization created to help promote safe births in Sierra Leone. It has the highest maternal mortality rates in West Africa, according to the World Health Organization.

“With each trip we are working toward capacity building and lasting impact,” added Seacrist. “I could go and deliver 100 babies, but I can also go and train 100 midwives.”

The team went to midwifery schools to share their years of clinical expertise and experience. They held a series of lectures, conducted hands-on skills sessions, and led simulation trainings on team communication, protecting the health of an expectant mom, and how to manage pregnancy and childbirth complications, such as hypertension, sepsis, hemorrhaging, and labor that is not progressing.

“We had them practice as if they were providing real patient care by walking through a scenario that escalated or became urgent,” said Jane Jach, MSN, RN, nursing professional development specialist.  “They were able to practice hands-on, real-time responses and develop their muscle memory for critical thinking.”

Empowering care, measuring impact

Hands-on training is what distinguishes them from other aid efforts, according to Janel Crawford, MD, Roseville ob-gyn and co-director for Hawa’s Hope. “People and companies like to donate equipment and other things, but nobody gives them any training on how to use them, or train the teachers on how to teach others how to use what’s donated. So those things just sit there.”

Teaching health practitioners has a profound effect on a community.

“If you can teach people, then there’s a ripple effect, and they teach others,” said Andrea Sherman, MD, ob-gyn.

Initially planning to deliver their workshops to about 200 people, they ended up with nearly 300 participants. They also accommodated a group of physician residents who heard they were in town.

“The joy and resilience of midwives there was palpable, despite the adversity and the conditions they are working in,” shared Jach.

To assess how well they were able to reach the goals of teaching the midwives, they administered tests before and after each workshop. Overall, they saw about a 13% increase in knowledge.

“Going into a different country, you have to pull yourself out of your own life and put your own bias aside. That gave me a whole new perspective.” said Ricks-Cosens.  “This experience helped solidify my own nursing knowledge and bettered my practice.”

Sherman added: “Even though we didn’t directly touch any patients, I honestly walked away from this experience really knowing in my heart we’ve saved women.”

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