Accelerated Bachelors to Masters in Nurse-Midwifery Program

The Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program (the 'AccBac') is designed to allow students who currently have a bachelor's degree with a major other than nursing to obtain a Bachelors of Science degree in nursing. This nursing program is five quarters of full-time nursing coursework starting with the summer term. 

Each year, a cohort of students enters the AccBac program with the intent to continue on to the Masters in Nurse-Midwifery program.  These students spend their final Integrative Practicum completing 260 hours of clinical time in both the Labor & Delivery and Mother & Baby units at OHSU.  This is a valuable opportunity for the students to work with nurse preceptors on the unit to learn about the unit culture and the nursing role.

Students then continue on to the Master's in Nurse-Midwifery Program, which is a two-year full-time program.  The program teaches students to manage common gynecological problems, family planning, pregnancy, birth and the newborn period.   Clinical opportunities are provided at OHSU, as well as in community health centers, health maintenance organizations, migrant health clinics, and private practices. Students receive more than 750 hours of supervised clinical practice in the program.

The AccBac to Master's in Nurse-Midwifery students often come with a variety of work and life experiences.  Some have extensive health care experience, while others are new to the field.  A passion for women's health unites the group.

Student Bios

	Kim Allard Originally from Massachusetts, Kim moved to OR from CA for nursing school.  While in CA she worked as the general pediatrics social worker at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford for eight years, where she honed her Spanish, fell in love with maternal-child health, and felt tremendous admiration for the nurses she worked with.  She lives in Portland with her partner, their daughter, two rambunctious golden retrievers and a cranky geriatric cat, and in her occasional free time she loves to knit.
	Sarah Bodian Sarah is from Salt Lake City, UT.  She is excited to support women and their families throughout their reproductive lives.  She looks forward to working with the impressive nursing team on L&D and MBU at OHSU over the next few years.  Please come to her with any questions or concerns you may have.
	Sarah Futernick Sarah comes from San Francisco, and moved to Portland in 2010 to start the Nurse-Midwifery program at OHSU. She graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.A. in Public Health, with an emphasis in maternal and child health. Her passion for midwifery started at an early age, leading her to volunteer at Homeless Prenatal Program and Children's Hospital in Oakland. She also worked at the UCSF Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment and the UCSF Center for Excellence in Women's Health.
	Dana Gerrits Dana is originally from Wisconsin and has a lot of Packers/Wisconsin Badger pride.  Before starting this program, she lived in San Diego, CA and worked with the homeless and mentally ill population.  She also volunteered as a birth doula which helped her discover her passion for women's health.  She spends much of her free time running, playing ultimate frisbee, and travelling.  She speaks Spanish and is trying to learn Chinese.  She is extremely grateful and excited to be studying Nurse-Midwifery at OHSU.
	Michelle Lane Michelle is from the tundra of Minnesota and is very happy to be here in Portland where she has no fear of freezing to death or being attacked by enormous mosquitoes. Before she came here, she was teaching in a Burmese refugee camp in Northwest Thailand where she witnessed incredible innovation and courage under difficult circumstances. At OHSU, she feels very privileged to learn from such a skilled group of nurses and providers. Hopefully, when she has sufficient experience, she plans to return to Thailand and work with backpacker medics to promote infant and maternal health in the internally displaced areas of Burma.
	Sarieah Macdonald Sarieah has been dancing through life collecting colorful stories and beautiful memories from all over the world since she was a child. Hailing most recently from the 'dreadlock capital of the west coast', Sarieah moved from Eugene after calling it her home for 7 years. When not getting her boog-a-loo on to live music, her hobbies include long gazes at stretching perineum, self-depreciating silliness leading to joyful laughter and answering questions about her (admittedly ridiculous) hair. She has 3 amazingly fantastic children aged 17, 13 and 10 upon whom she brags frequently and who are her greatest supporters. Her passionate advocacy for marginalized/disenfranchised women brings out her serious side and is the guiding light to why she is at OHSU. Believing in the powerful impact compassion can have on people's lives, Sarieah loves working with those in need – particularly teens.
	Jenney Stringer Jenney is from upstate New York and enjoys being outside, cooking vegetarian meals and swimming in fresh water.  She became interested in nursing and midwifery after becoming a doula and working as a birth assistant for a nurse-midwifery home birth/birth center practice in California.  She is an enthusiastic learner and loves working with families and supporting normal birth.
	Heather Wilson Heather hails from California but called Washington, DC home for the last seven years.  She drafted legislation pertaining to women's health as a Legislative Aide in the U.S. House of Representatives and then went on to serve as a birth doula and apprentice midwife for three years.   She has assisted hundreds of birthing women and is passionate about midwifery.  Heather and her husband are thrilled to be back on the West Coast after a decade-long hiatus.