The international news outlet Al Jazeera English features MCAI’s task-shifting project in Liberia. The documentary was first aired on the 25th July 2016 in a full-length episode of its medical programme, The Cure. The episode will be repeated throughout the week and also available to watch on its website. Al Jazeera have also written an article promoting this project.

 

In February this year, a film crew from Al Jazeera English accompanied MCAI’s Honorary Medical Director, Professor David Southall, on a visit to Liberia to capture our Liberian programme on film. The documentary celebrates and showcases our task shifting project, in collaboration with the Liberian Ministry of Health, WHO and UNFPA, in which midwives and physician assistants are trained by Liberian senior doctors in advanced obstetric techniques, including surgery.

 

MCAI’s first two trainee obstetric clinicians (midwife surgeons), Naomi Lewis and Hannah Gibson are now working as interns in 2 hospitals—CB Dunbar in Bong County and Redemption Hospital in Monrovia. Since the start of their training in October 2014 until April 2016, Naomi and Hannah have performed 671 advanced obstetric procedures, including 424 Caesarean sections.  There were no maternal deaths resulting from any of these procedures.

 

Last year, MCAI received $100,000 of funding from WHO to scale up and roll out this training programme throughout Liberia and 9 more trainee obstetric clinicians are currently being trained.