08/29/2025
I first got certified in neonatal resuscitation (NRP) in 1997 and have been re-certifying every 2 years since then. When I moved to Illinois, a fellow home birth midwife - Brande Ruskusky told me about Karen Strange’s NRP class and what a phenomenal teacher she is. Brande shared with me how unique Karen’s method of teaching is compared to the standard NRP classes - that although she covers the same material, it is geared more specifically for out of hospital birth providers. At first I thought that surely it couldn’t be that much different, but being the curious person that I am with an insatiable love for learning new things, decided to check it out. All I can say is that Brande was so right - Karen’s unique and grounded way of teaching not only delivers the knowledge we need - but also instills true confidence in those learning from her. During Karen's class, she also walks out of hospital providers to know how to perform neonatal resuscitation when they happen to be alone at a birth without their assistant or the midwife, and also what to do if they should not have resuscitation equipment available. Karen is so passionate and invested in this work that she offers to every participant the invitation to schedule a debriefing session for anyone who has had a difficult resuscitation to help them process and learn what they could have done different and what to do the next time it happens. She has over 29 years of teaching NRP and doing debriefing sessions. Karen’s courses are highly sought after worldwide, and I am sure that she has saved hundreds if not thousands of babies through her global travel to teach this NRP course to both hospital and out of hospital nurses and providers. I have now attended her NRP course every 2 years since around 2014 and I always come away learning something new and feeling confident in my resuscitation skills. I also want to give a shout out to my friend and doula, Marcia Mattern for organizing this workshop for us every other year. It is always a fun reunion to get together with central Illinois birth workers, and also fun to see new faces from surrounding states which helps to form a strong professional network where we can share experiences and knowledge with eachother.
To sum everything up, I cannot stress enough the importance for out of hospital birth providers and assistants to take Karen Strange’s NRP course - you definitely will not regret it and will come away feeling confident in your resuscitation skills. After taking Karen's course, you just might save a precious baby’s life due to feeling calm, confident and grounded during the resuscitation process, versus feeling full of stress and adrenaline which can lead to poor decision making. Thank you Karen for who you are and for the personal sacrifices that you have made to share your priceless knowledge, wisdom and skills - you are so dearly loved and appreciated!!!
