Students and health practitioners training at the University Centre for Rural Health Northern Rivers (UCRH) based in Uralba Street, Lismore, will have access to a new, world-class maternal and birthing simulator called MamaAnne.

UCRH is the first location in Australia to take delivery of the MamaAnne simulator, and one of the first sites internationally to use the newly released training tool.

MamaAnne is a simulator made by Laerdal Medical and developed in partnership with Limbs & Things which was unveiled last year in San Diego, USA. It provides high-fidelity simulation training in critical obstetric emergencies.

UCRH’s Director, Professor Vicki Flood, said MamaAnne was an important addition to UCRH’s Simulation Centre capacity.

“MamaAnne’s arrival allows those coming through our Simulation Centre to have immersive and technology-enhanced training,” she said.

“From medical students to doctors to midwifes, this means we can help students and health professionals, develop and fine-tune their skills, thanks to incredibly realistic simulation-based learning.”

MamaAnne has been designed to cover the mother’s labour and delivery journey, from maternal initial assessment to postnatal care. Birthing teams can train on the simulator for obstetric emergencies, including the top causes of maternal mortality: postpartum haemorrhage, hypertensive disorders, sepsis, obstructed labour.

UCRH will use MamaAnne to teach medical students on rural placement with us and as a part of the various continuing professional development courses UCRH offers to the region’s health workforce.

MamaAnne’s first use at UCRH was led by Clinical Skills and Simulation Educator, Rebecca Austin at a session with University of Sydney medical students on a year-long rural placement. The students are doing a term focused on perinatal and women's health.

“We covered many scenarios around what’s called maternal collapse, including maternal advanced life support, eclampsia and postpartum haemorrhage,” Ms Austin said.

“It’s incredible how lifelike MamaAnne is. She is so accurate in terms of the physiological aspects of pregnancy and labour, and that means the education we provide sets up the students ideally for their future careers.”

Importantly, MamaAnne supports the development of student and practitioner confidence as well as skills, narrowing the gap between theory and hands-on practice. This is because of how accurate and lifelike the simulator is.

MamaAnne has an automatic delivery system that precisely and accurately mirrors birth movements through the birthing canal. Silicone skin provides a realistic look and feel while articulating joints allow for simulation of any number of birthing positions. Other features of MamaAnne include the capacity for realistic bleeding which means training for postpartum haemorrhage can be provided.

UCRH purchased MamaAnne at a cost of $116,000 with Australian Government funding through the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training program. This program aims to improve the recruitment and retention of medical, nursing, dental and allied health professionals in rural and remote Australia.

The World Health Organisation has reported that globally in 2020, almost 800 women died every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. Ensuring that women have access to high-quality care in pregnancy and during and after childbirth is critical to address this. MamaAnne will be vital to allow UCRH to play and important role in ensuring the region’s current and future health professionals are equipped to handle these situations.