First responders and medical professionals without specialized obstetrics training – including emergency room doctors and nurses – are leaning how to handle pregnancy and delivery complications like hypertension and hemorrhage through the STORK training program created by doctors at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) who recognized that in a rural state with dwindling options for obstetrical care, women are likely to deliver outside of dedicated labor and delivery wards, and to need care from people who don’t see pregnant patients every day.
The STORK Program’s half-day training includes lectures and simulations to change that dynamic. STORK stands for Stabilizing OB and Neonatal Patients, Training for OB/Neonatal Emergencies, Outcome Improvements, Resource Sharing, and Kind Care for Vulnerable Families. The training is funded with a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and is run by MCES, a division of UMMC that houses critical care transport services – including helicopter teams – and the state’s communications system for hospitals and first responders, Mississippi MED-COM. So far, about 150 people from around the state – a mix of registered nurses, physicians, medical residents, firefighters and paramedics – have completed the training. More than 18 trainings are on the calendar.