It’s been a month since our last progress update on the big changes here at The Midwifery Institute so it’s time for an Update to our Big Update. In addition, it’s currently Cyber Monday so I’m on call all the live long day assisting in responding to student inquiries and questions, so I might as well write this up, right?
Childbirth Educator Training
So I bit off more than I could chew here. A launch for last week was never really realistic and would have required 16-hour days from me without a break for over a month to complete- burn out is good for no one, so, We are pushing back the release. I will continue working on this course, but at a more realistic pace. I will make sure to mention where we stand on this highly anticipated course at each of my monthly updates.
Fertility Doula
Updates are complete! This course may continue to evolve slightly over time, but the major necessary changes were completed by Student Experience Coordinator, Sam last week!
Labor & Birth Doula 2.0
This is a work in progress, and on track to be completed by January 2023 Due to recent questions from students, We want to be clear, NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO MATERIAL WILL BE MADE- THIS IS A FORMATTING UPDATE ONLY
“If you’ve been our student for more than one course, you’ll likely have noticed a significant formatting difference between the labor & birth doula training and all of our other classes. This is because our Online Learning System (OLS) underwent an important update only weeks after we completed the digitalization of our Labor & Birth doula training from the previous in-person format, changing the game in how both the instructor and student interfaces work. The content of the course will not change radically. Still, acknowledging that the current course is less user-friendly than we are otherwise providing, We will be working on converting the existing system into the new, more user-friendly format over the next two months. Our current course will remain accessible to all existing students until the course is completed and available for purchase at a deep discount by new enrollees Until we are prepared to Launch Labor & Birth Doula 2.0. Our current students need not worry about a sudden deadline that did not exist before. After the launch of 2.0, our current (1.0) version will remain available at no additional cost for currently enrolled students.“
New Courses
We have been working with several experts in their fields to launch a series of Guest Speaker webinars on a variety of topics related to birth work and parenting. I’m VERY excited about this, in addition to the new courses and webinars we announced last month.
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New Courses will be introduced periodically throughout 2023 and beyond, from Continuing education to new certifications. Our one-day goal is to be an all-inclusive destination for birth worker training at all levels, from pre-conception through the first year.
On our Roster for New Certifications are the following:
- Lactation Counselor Training, for which we will be working with the ICBLC to provide lactation education to families; And-
- Postnatal Educator Training, providing instructor certification for those providing education to groups or individuals on parenting newborns, feeding, and sleeping, adjustments to family life, and physical recovery, which we hope will prove an excellent addition to any existing birth work practice.
For Continuing Education, we are working on the following:
- Cultural Competency & Trauma Informed Care for Birth Workers is a requirement in several states where Doulas can accept Medicaid and provide a generalized education for birth workers on assisting a wide variety of clients. And-
- Babywearing for Birthworkers is a brief, stand-alone continuing education course to aid birth workers in assisting families utilizing a variety of carriers.
You’ll see the highest number of Additions in Webinars:
- Newborn Sleep
- Business For Birthworkers III: Professionalism and Clients
- Business for Birthworkers IV: Cooperative Practice
- Emergency Birth Skills (a 3-part Series)
- Self-Care for Birth Workers
- …AND MANY MORE
End Quote.
Other Improvements
We have launched a new Discord community! This is open to birth workers of all stages and levels, in addition to a monthly membership with extra benefits. You can find more on this in the Store.
We Redesigned the Website to make it more streamlined and user-friendly. This may take some time to get used to for our long-time students, but we have faith that it’ll be a quick adjustment for the grand majority.
APP incoming! In the next two weeks, we are going to begin the process of setting up our new Online Learning APP. After numerous recent inquiries, we have decided to invest in the architecture necessary to make this happen and further streamline your learning experience at the Midwifery Institute. We’re super stoked about this update!
Syllabuses will soon be included in the first module of every course. These can be useful in the future to demonstrate training hours to insurance companies and clients alike, and to show that other programs fail to match the education you receive here at The Midwifery Institute.
Maternity Leave
Sam is going on Maternity leave any day now! We are all so excited for her and her husband to welcome their new little one. Sam’s not sure how long she *can* stay away (What can I say, It’s an addictive job!). Still, we are going to pressure her to take AT LEAST 6 weeks to snuggle the wee bairn and get used to being a family of 4 before she comes back- During that time, I will be covering the courses Sam facilitates, as well as possible guest grading from co-founder Heather Carmody. With the recent influx of students over the current sale weekend, that may mean slightly less often grading. I apologize for the inconvenience. We must ensure Sam has all the time she needs to bond and heal. If anyone knows the importance of the fourth trimester, it should be birth workers.
That’s all from me today!
With Love-
Rebecca Emmons, Executive Director