In September 2022, staff at the McBride and District Hospital ran the first “test” virtual simulation via Zoom to integrate the Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) and the Acute Care of At-Risk Newborns (ACoRN) birth stabilization program into rural communities within the province.
Supported by a multidisciplinary team, the integrated program helps to identify and care for babies who become unwell or are at risk of becoming unwell in the first few hours or days after birth.
“The integration project was a collaboration between BC Women’s, Perinatal Services BC [PSBC], Real-Time Virtual Support [RTVS], Child Health Advice in ReaL-time Electronically [CHARLiE], the Maternity and Newborn Advice Line [MABaL] and the great staff at McBride hospital,” says Jola Berkman, Provincial Coordinator, Neonatal Care at PSBC.
Following the simulation session, the clinical team can provide best-practice guidance during real-world births. The first two communities to pilot the integrated program were McBride and Golden.
“The day after our simulation with Golden, the staff team had an almost identical delivery,” notes Tom Skinner, Project Manager at Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc). “The team was so relieved to have had the opportunity to practice their ACoRN algorithms and practice calling CHARLiE.”
Tom noted that the feedback from the first two pilot communities has been overwhelmingly positive, with every participant saying they would highly recommend this session to their colleagues, that the pre-course content was effectively delivered, and that the simulation left them feeling better prepared.
“We now have multiple communities on the ‘waitlist’ for the next session,” he continued.
The program continues to be implemented across B.C.
