Birth Assistant Basics Course Alumni
Compliments
"My attendance with Chelsea and Micki and this birth assistant course was a great experience. The length was a little over two days, and I quickly acclimated to their teachings and instruction of the content of the class. Both were pleasant to get to know, as they had amazing sense of humors, yet extremely thorough in their teachings. You are able to practice setting up birth trays, practice draws, practice scenarios, and leave feeling a more equipped to attend births. I recommend! ~ Maggie M, Reno NV
"As a doula, I took this course to add some clinical knowledge to be resume. I feel much more confident helping our community midwives if they need an extra hand AND I am much more aware of how to support my clients. The online course gave me a deeper knowledge of birth both when it's perfectly perfect and when it deviates from normal. I recommend this course to every doula!" Alice K. MN
"I found the online course to be incredibly well done and thorough. It had the right amount of listening/reading and doing. It was interactive too! I also liked that when I had questions they were quick to respond." Laura T, TN
"I’ve attended 7 births with a midwife preceptor; one of those resulted in a slow to transition baby. I had no formal assisting training apart from NNR. I fumbled a bit, thankfully not a detrimental impact. This course affirmed that I did so many things very well and that the fumble was a lack of practice rather than a deficiency in myself as a competent birth worker. My favorite part of all the classes, aside from the excellent scope and presentation, is the acknowledgement of how much an assistant does do, how many tasks must be done almost simultaneously. That, also, is very affirming." Anna Iker
"The online course was so good!! I was able to jump into the classroom at my own pace, when my kids were sleeping. I failed a quiz and Micki talked me through it, reset it and gave me all of the encouragement I needed to feel confident. I HIGHLY recommend this to anyone interested in being a birth assistant!" ~Renee B. Florida
"Amazing workshop!! Thank you so much for providing this course for our community! I am thrilled to begin my new journey. Sad class is ending, but excited to get out and learn and grow and return for more wonderful education! Thank you to the both of you!" Rachel, Wasilla AK
"MCU waived my Birth Assisting Orientation class because I had taken the Birth Assisting Basics Course @ NWBA. I loved getting the training in person and hands on, instead of online. " Lauren S. Vashon Is, WA
"What an amazing 3 days. I am leaving with confidence, love and appreciation for birth and all the care that midwives provide." Maya O, Kirkland WA
"Thank you, Chelsea and Micki! Your passion is contagious!"
"NWBA is incredible! The training is fun but packs a big punch of valuable knowledge and skills that nobody should go to a birth without! Chelsea and Micki are the perfect mix of professionalism and fun with a whole lot of patience!" Rebecca O., San Diego CA
"Thank you, for your continued support of the Licensed Midwifery Community." MAWS President, Valerie Sasson, LM CPM
"I am so glad the class size was small. I am looking forward to advanced classes and I have so much confidence going forward with NWBA support behind me." Jennica, Seattle WA
"This class is fantastic! Thank you both for helping a dream come true!"
"Micki and I Chelsea were full of answers, not only about BA work & skills, but about living the life of a BA and how to make it a great career."
"I took the Birth Assistant training while I was in midwifery school, in between my first and second year. This training was concise, focused, and hands-on. The instructors were approachable and great at explaining the course material. As a birth doula learning to be a midwife, this class was helpful to picking up concrete skills to use in my school courses. I walked into my first birth experiences as a student midwife with a firm understanding of the monitoring skills used in labor and important emergency skills."
Lauren Smrcina CNM,ARNP
"The prerequisites complimented and supported this course so well. The clarity of the information and expectations for this field have become so clear to me." Angela E
"I just want to thank both of you for creating and offering this course. This is going to be instrumental to my ability to work in the profession I know I am called to do. So, thank you for bringing this gift to the world!"
"Amazing and valuable class. I am so impressed with the knowledge and wisdom of Micki & Chelsea."
"I took the Birth Assistants Basics Course before applying to Bastyr's Midwifery Program. I wanted to get an idea of the kinds of things I would do as a Student Midwife at births, and increase my own knowledge to feel more comfortable starting school. I am so glad I took this course! It completely solidified that the Midwifery program was where I need to be, and leaving the class, I was even more excited about starting than I was before. When we started our birth assisting class in the Midwifery program, I already had a leg up on many of the acronyms commonly used, as well as how to chart and setting up for a birth. I feel so much more prepared and confident to start attending births. I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to take the Birth Assistants course with Micki and Chelsea! " Meghan Schneider, Bastyr Midwifery Student
"Loved every minute. Thank you for SO much for sharing your experiences, heart and knowledge."
"Walked away knowing a lot more than I thought was possible in 3 days. You're both AMAZING teachers!"
"Thank you so much. Such a great & informative class. Feeling very prepared to go out and start learning in a real life environment."
"Appreciate trainers passion for birth and training materials. Enjoyed the opportunity to have hands on practice and time to practice doppler with a pregnant mom. Thank you."
"The Birth Assistants Basics course was an excellent adjunct to my education at MCU. I decided to enroll in the course while I was taking the Birth Assistant class at MCU because I wanted the hands on experience that MCU is lacking. I learned so much during my weekend with Micki and Chelsea, and felt it was so worth the extra investment. I began my first clinical placement shortly after taking the course and felt so well prepared. I was able to start my first day already familiar with the supplies, equipment, basic charting and with basic emergency procedures in the role of assistant. I was also able to feel confident my first day taking blood pressures, pulse, temperature and drawing up medications. This class was invaluable to me, as well as to the midwives who’s practice I joined. Added to all that, Micki and Chelsea are warm, knowledgable instructors. They did an excellent job of fitting a lot of information into the weekend while keeping it interesting and fun!"
Lauren Strain, Student Midwife
"I took the training with NWBA while I was finishing my prerequisites for midwifery school. Because of the thorough training and fabulous reputation that Micki and Chelsea have in the community, I was able to get a birth assisting job at a birth center immediately. The trainers at the birth center were amazed at how much I knew and how all they have do teach me was the specifics of what each midwife wanted. I attended as many births as I could, additional training from NWBA and eventually became the first certified birth assistant through NWBA. Micki and Chelsea have been available to me to answer questions, offer me tips, and keep me up to date on current guidelines.
When I got accepted to the Midwives College of Utah, I was able to waive their birth assistant training because I had my certification through NWBA. After my third birth with my preceptor, she told me "well clearly you KNOW how to birth assist, let's start working on primaries." Every midwife I birth assisted for would make comments about how little they needed to do their "own" training, I had the basics and knew how to handle certain situations without being told what to do. Mercedes S. MCU Student (now LM, CPM)
Micki and Chelsea love what they do and it is contagious! The training held so much amazing information and offered incredible hands on experience. I felt ready and confident in my skills as a birth assistant right after certification. Four years later, I am a licensed midwife and I STILL remember some of the words of wisdom my trainers used during my training at NWBA. For example, "if you're not sure what to do...ask!" "be ready for anything and everything," and "remember to wear appropriate clothing to births, there's a good chance you'll end up in someones birth photos!" Thank you Micki and Chelsea, you both were a huge part of my journey toward midwifery!"
Rachael Cook LM, CPM, MCU Graduate
