Speaker
Rebecca Ullman, CNM, MSN


Speaker Bio
Rebecca Ullman, CNM, MSN (Yale University, 1988) has been working in Global Health for more than 10 years with a particular interest in barriers to care for vulnerable populations exaggerated by inequities, poverty, war, conflict and natural disasters, including climate change. She brings her experience with victims of sexual and physical violence, often a neglected part of global health in work that has the goal to diminish birth and pregnancy related morbidity and mortality.
Rebecca is a strong advocate for reproductive rights and respectful patient centered care, regardless of the context.
She has been a technical advisor for ACNM Global Health Department since September 2019.
She practiced full scope midwifery in Klamath Falls, Oregon prior to joining Doctors Without Borders in 2012 where she worked until joining the ACNM global health department in 2019. With a Bachelor degree in education and teaching experience, she brings expertise in curriculum development and innovative teaching methods to the global work with trainings and supportive supervision of midwives and other clinicians in various locations and types of medical facilities and community work.
Her experience includes supervision of maternity units in South Sudan, Nepal and Laos, facilitation of international trainings in sexual violence for nurses, midwives and physicians in subsaharan Africa, and assessment and implementation of sexual violence programs for vulnerable people affected by conflict, displacement and natural disasters in Cote d’Ivoire, Uganda, Bangladesh, and Central African Republic.
She completed a graduate certificate in International Public Health from University of North Carolina in 2015.


Course Description
ACNM global department works to improve maternal and neonatal outcomes in the world by strengthening midwifery. This seminar will present ACCESS U, an example of one global program that uses the midwifery model of care for continuing education of doctors, midwives, and nurses, a holistic approach, where the childbearing person, family, and neonate are at the center of the care.
Decreasing maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity is a priority for the Ministry of Health in Madagascar. As part of a grant to improve health outcomes, ACNM partners with the American Academy of Pediatrics In Madagascar to develop an online program to foster quality of services and educational opportunities by working with local and global partners.

Clinicians and childbearing families are challenged by access to care in Madagascar where long distances, climate change, lack of economic opportunities, politics, religion, post-colonialism attitudes, and multiple cultural beliefs and practices affect health, equity, and availability of care.
The program design is based on adult learning theory that intertwines clinical skills, physiology, and pathophysiology with quality assurance. Through tests, job-aids, quizzes, role plays, exercises, and activities the focused modules captivate and motivate participants to learn and at the same time, improve the systemic functioning of the health care system.

Although the modules of ACCESS U are specifically developed around the protocols, language, and cultural norms of Madagascar, its interactive program design is a universally applicable model for other countries, communities, and ministries of health. Examples of learning materials as well as an in-depth discussion of the methodology, challenges, successes, and lessons learned will be presented.


Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to:

1. Understanding ACNM’s approach to global midwifery strengthening through close partnerships with local and global organizations
2. Adapting the midwifery model of care with an emphasis on respectful patient/family-centered care to national Ministry of Health protocols for online learning in remote areas of Madagascar.
3. Integrating quality assurance exercises and systemic analysis into the curriculum as part of clinical capacity building.
4. Applying adult learning methodology to continuing education and clinical capacity building through quizzes, interactive games, and exercises, role plays, and case studies.