Healthier moms, babies | UDaily

Allie Melchione rushed to Christiana Hospital on a late Saturday afternoon last spring. It would be her first time stepping into a maternity ward with a job to do. It’s a unit she hopes to one day work in full-time. 

The senior nursing major was serving as a birth companion for a 17-year-old girl named Melanie, who was giving birth for the first time. Five hours later, Melchione witnessed the joy of birth when Melanie gave birth to a healthy baby girl, Genesis.

The hours leading up to that moment were a pivotal point for Melchione to put her nursing education and skills to the test.

“In birth companion classes, I learned a lot of relaxing factors. The mother was in a lot of pain, and she didn’t want the epidural — it wasn’t part of her birthing plan,” she said. “We used essential oils and breathing exercises before she got the epidural to help calm her down and ease the pain. 

Calming tactics like that are proven to lead to better birth outcomes.

“Anything we can do to support the natural physiologic functions associated with labor and limit intervention leads to better outcomes,” said Jennifer Korkosz, associate professor in the University of Delaware’s School of Nursing (SON). “If we can help a mother relax enough to assist labor in progressing, perhaps we can prevent a C-section or an assisted delivery that can bring with them complications in certain situations.”

The mom Melchione was paired with was shy, and it took time for the two to develop a bond. But that day in the hospital room, Melchione was Melanie’s spokeswoman.  

“Leading up to the birth, I was talking her through it and giving her options,” Melchione said. “She wasn’t vocal, so I was her voice to ensure she was comfortable. She said she felt pressure, so I told the nurse to check how dilated she was. The birth companion program really prepared me to present her with all of the options since you never know how a birth is going to go.”

Afterward, Melchione heard two simple words that meant the world to her: “Thank you.” 

“It was a really good feeling,” Melchione said. “I felt appreciated.” 

Melchione got this opportunity by enrolling in UD’s Birth Companion Certificate Program, a partnership between the University and ChristianaCare, founded in the fall of 2021. Korkosz spearheaded the program on UD’s end. 

“ChristianaCare wanted to create the birth companion program to offer outreach to pregnant mothers during COVID who were so limited in the visitors or support people they were allowed to have in the hospital with them,” Korkosz said. 

Due to strict requirements on the clinical side, UD’s Birth Companion Certificate Program is restricted to nursing students. While not a part of the nursing curriculum, the certificate course through the Division of Professional and Continuing Studies, is only offered in the spring. 

“While students don’t get nursing school credit for the course, this program maximizes their knowledge going into their women’s health course in their senior year,” Korkosz said. “Once they obtain the certificate, they can provide birth companion support for any patient at a ChristianaCare hospital going forward.” 

Katherine Haigh, an assistant professor in SON who’s teaching a course called, “Women’s Health Across the Lifespan,” in the fall of 2022 and coordinating women’s health clinicals, called the birth companion program a fabulous opportunity for students to take an active part in their education outside of clinicals. 

“It’s an amazing opportunity for them to actively get in the hospital alongside their delivering partner and help them throughout this process,” Haigh said. “It doesn’t matter if that birth happens at 2.a.m, they are jazzed to get up and do their part. It’s so wonderful to see that.” 

The birth companion program also prepared Melchione for her labor and delivery clinical which she completed at the beginning of this semester. 

“My training on each stage of pregnancy, birth and postpartum gave me an extra leg up in clinical,” she said. “Seeing a birth before clinical was also beneficial — not only because I love the experience and want to pursue working in this unit as a career — but most of my classmates were nervous and unsure what to expect and how they’d react their first time seeing it. I knew what to expect and was prepared and ready to work the first day.” 

Taking part in a birth companion program is a relatively rare opportunity for nursing students that gives them a competitive advantage. 

“This on a resume when they’re applying for positions is an awesome opportunity that definitely sets them apart from other candidates,” Korkosz said. “It’s just another aspect that really sets UD’s School of Nursing apart as far as preparing nursing and nursing leaders for the future.”  

Elizabeth Speakman,  senior associate dean of the School of Nursing, has been an avid supporter of the program from day one. 

“The School of Nursing is continually working toward offering opportunities to prepare students for the healthcare workforce, and the fact that this program also supported the community at large was a huge plus,” Speakman said. “We are so pleased and proud of the students who embarked on this initiative to become a birthing companion.”