Saving Mothers & Newborns in Liberia 2026-27

Project Title:   Improving Maternal-Newborn Care in Liberia Through Continuing Professional Development (CDD) Workshops

Introduction

The primary focus of this second quarterly report is on the follow-up of participants’ roll-up activities after the 2026 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) workshop held February 6- 10 2026. To ensure that the workshop resources could have a positive trickle down effect across Liberia, participants were given flash drives loaded with workshop resources to be used in their training institutions and hospital/healthcare facilities.

The Issue, Problem, or Challenge?

According to Michel-Schuldt et al. (2018), maternal and newborn mortality remains high in Liberia. Evidence shows a severe rural-urban gap accessibility to healthcare services. Remote areas are facing the greatest burden of mortality because of poor access and utilization of healthcare services. Continuing Professional Development workshops have been limited in Liberia due to lack of resources and financial support.

Solution

A competent midwifery/nursing workforce is able to meet the needs of mothers and newborns. Evidence shows that competence can be assured through initial education along with continuous professional development (CPD).CPD workshops and regular mentoring visits not only improve knowledge and skills of midwives and nurses, but also provide a solution to enhance accessibility in rural areas, as well as to improve the career development of healthcare personnel working in remote areas (Michel-Schuldt et al., 2018).

This is why during the five-day training CPD workshops, the Friends of Liberia-Liberia Health Team (FOL-LHT) conducted a CPD workshop with key focus on maternal-infant survival: Pre-eclampsia & Eclampsia, MgSO Dosing and Monitoring Checklist, and Managing Common Obstetric and Neonatal Emergencies. Because of work-related issues in the country, we also presented on the Importance of Conflict Resolution among faculty members and healthcare workers

During the current follow-up, a participant from the highest institution of learning in the country stated: “The Training of Trainers workshop was highly beneficial and has enhanced my professional knowledge and teaching capacity.”

Potential Long-Term Impact

A competent nursing/midwifery workforce is able to meet the needs of mothers and newborns. Evidence shows that competence can be assured through initial education along with continuous professional development (CPD). While we expect more roll-out across Liberia, we believe that the initial roll-out at four training institutions/hospitals with a total of 104 participants will add to the government’s efforts to reduce the infant-maternal mortality and morbidity rates in Liberia.

Conclusion

Evidence shows that continuing professional development workshops can improve the quality of care provided by healthcare professionals. While progress has been made in the reduction of child mortality, the maternal mortality ratio remains very high, with an estimated 1,072 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to the Liberian Demographic Health Survey 2013 (Ministry of Health and Social Welfare [Liberia] 2014). Although training can be valuable tool that prepares healthcare professionals to thrive their roles, it can be a waste without adequate follow-up.

Links:

• Friends of Liberia, Inc. website