Aviva Institute is honored to participate in a unique educational exchange program in Ghana, West Africa. We will be working side by side with the local midwives and health practitioners. We will be teaching local midwives specific skills as well as learning from them. In addition to learning and experiencing tropical midwifery we will also be doing HIV/AIDs education, and general community health. We will be working with the Ghana Registered Midwives Association and the Education and Health Development Trust and Girl-Child International, under the direction of Sandra Ross.

Photos by: Lydia Kwanu/IRF

Brazza Maternity Clinic is a community health center, established in 1987. It is located in Kwashiema, a suburb in Accra. The community it serves has a very poor economic base with more than 90% of the families living under the poverty line.  The clinic's priority program is community based health care emphasizing  primary health care and home health sanitation.

Eligibility: Open to all CPMs, CNMS, RNs, NDs, LMs and Aviva second and third year students. Practicing midwives without a CPM or non Aviva students must get prior approval.

Prerequisites: Completion of a three week online orientation to tropical midwifery course CLNC–10-GHANA begins 2/11/08. The courses HLTH 201 HIV Education and HLTH 401 Community Health in the Developing World  are highly encouraged.

Clinical Experience: Qualified participants will be able to do deliveries and do a range of clinical tasks, with Ghana midwives or under the supervision of Aviva faculty for students.This is not a program designed to give people high volumes of births in a short time, but a offer a broader cultural clinical experience. The number of deliveries will vary for each participant, from about 3-10, as well as doing IVs, lab work, prenatal care, newborn and pediatric care, general health care, reproductive health, and HIV/AIDs counseling. 

2008 Dates
1.  March 1-April 5, 2008
2.  August 2-Sept 7, 2008

Each five week session involves workshops in Tropical Midwifery, clinical practicum at the Brazza clinic, and field trips into the rural areas.

In addition to Sandra Ross, Aviva Faculty will be providing experienced teaching midwives. Guest lecturers, from Ghana include midwives, nurses, physicians, health care workers and administrators.

Sandra Ross with three Ghana women

Schedule

Join us for the international clinical experience of your life as we travel to Ghana, West Africa. A detailed downloadable guide will be available online in a few weeks which gives information about Accra, housing, lists of things to bring, communications, health, safety, meals, recreation, activities, as well as a more detailed schedule of clinical coursework.

Week 1 March 3-9 (August 4-10):  Welcome and Cultural Orientation with bus tour of Accra landmarks and historic neighborhoods; visit Brazza Maternity Clinic, Midwives’ House/Ghana Registered Midwives Association, and midwives training schools/Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. 

Week 2 March 10-16  (August 11-17) Fundamentals of Tropical Midwifery
Guest lecturers, Dr. Mary Softly-Welch, EHDT/GCI; and others from the Ghana Ministry of Health - Nurses and Midwives Council of Ghana.

Week 3 March 17-23 (August 8-24) Fundamentals of Tropical Midwifery (Clinical), Brazza Maternity Clinic.
Guest lecturers, Dr. Matthew Levy, Director of Pediatrics/KIDS Program, Georgetown University Hospital; Dr. Charles Broadfield, Clinical Psychologist, VCT/PLWHIV, Virginia Beach; and TBD, Action for West Africa Region-Reproductive Health/USAID, Accra.

Week 4 March 22-30 (August 23-31) Rural Africa Practicum: Tamale (Cape Coast) Community Health Service / Maternity Clinic:

Week 5 March 31-April 5 (September 1-7) Debriefing about Tamale (Cape Coast) clinical; Brazza Maternity Clinic.
Guest lecturers, TBD, Nursing Training College/Korle-Bu; TBD, School of Midwifery/Korle-Bu; TBD, Midwifery Training School - Nurses Training College, Koforidia

"Turning Out" Ceremony (Course Graduation Dinner).

* Participants must bring at least three midwife kits, and are encouraged to bring more if possible. We are encouraging participants to do local fundraising to bring additional medical supplies for the Brazzo Clinic and for the rural midwives we will be visiting. A list of needed supplies will be provided.

Please note: we are working on discounts for airfare and some of these fees. This is an early estimate. Donated airline miles can be used to offset airfare costs.

Expecting mothers in rural areas will be given a midwife kit containing simple basic supplies needed for delivery.

Midwife Kits:  

• 2 cord ties: 8" narrow lengths of selvage, 1/4" twill tape or  prepackaged sterile cord ties.
• 1 razor blade (single-edge, safety-wrapped), or sterile scalpel
• 1 regular size bath towel
• 1 36" square muslin or plastic backed sheeting
• 1 wash cloth (thin)
• 1 bath size bar Ivory soap
• 1 newborn stocking cap
• 1 newborn cotton or flannel t-shirt
• 1 receiving blanket
• 4 pair vinyl or latex exam gloves (clean, not sterile), NO kitchen gloves
  
  Place the cord ties and razor blade inside a small Ziploc bag. Wrap everything inside the bath towel and insert into a 2-gallon Ziploc bag. Squeeze the air out of the bag before sealing it.

In addition some specific medical supplies may be donated to Ghana Midwives, lists of needed or recommended items provided.