Working towards ending preventable maternal mortality
& respectful care for all birthing people
Care Through
Knowledge
Acadia Global Institute for Midwifery & Women’s Health is an educational platform for maternal and newborn health, empowering birth practitioners, facilities, and institutions to provide evidence-based, patient-centred care to their communities.
Our Programs
We design capacity-building programs, online classes and resource centres as ready-to-implement tools.
Obstetrical Emergency Training
Skilled and knowledgeable practitioners are a key factor in ending preventable maternal and infant mortality from birth-practice error. Our training equips providers with critical emergency response skills to improve outcomes and save lives.
addressing the root causes of liberal episiotomy
The persistence of liberal (routine) episiotomy, despite global recommendations against it, is rooted in a lack of knowledge and trust in a woman’s body. Our courses directly address the consequences of routine episiotomy (including septicemia and death), and provide simple, alternative practice guidelines that are proven to make birth safer for mother and newborn.
evidence-based RESEARCH literacy
Staying informed on the latest research, policies, and guidelines is crucial for safe and effective birth practice. The courses we offer will break down the latest research, policies, and guidelines, and guide you in accessing these original resources and developing critical appraisal skills to assess research quality and relevance in clinical practice.
fetal heart monitoring course
Birth asphyxia is the leading cause of neonatal mortality in developing countries. This course strengthens practitioners' ability to interpret fetal heart patterns with precision, ensuring timely and appropriate interventions that support safer births.
Our Goals
ENDING PREVENTABLE MATERNAL MORTALITY.
Every two minutes, a woman dies from pregnancy and birth-related complications, yet over 96% of those deaths are preventable (WHO, 2025). On the first day of life, in any given year, 1 million children will die. While those numbers are difficult even to comprehend, our goal is to empower your organization to understand and reduce known risk factors - thereby creating evidence-based practice and policy environments that prioritize maternal and newborn safety.
ending preventable neonatal death.
Approximately 7,000 newborns die every day. Of those, about 80% are preventable deaths. (WHO) Every year, 2 million infants die within their first week of life; 1 million in their first day alone. This makes focus on newborn care more critical than ever before. The large majority of newborn deaths are due to complications related to birth. (MCEE) Therefore, targeting the time around birth with proven high-impact interventions and quality care for newborns may prevent up to 80 per cent of newborn deaths. (UNICEF)
RESPECTFUL CARE FOR ALL BIRTHING PEOPLE.
Respectful care in maternal and newborn health is a foundational pillar of safe, ethical, and effective health systems. Global evidence, including guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO), positions patient-centred care as a core dimension of quality, demonstrating its influence on access to care, service utilization, and maternal and newborn outcomes. At Acadia, our expertise lies in translating this global standard into practice. We design and deliver advanced training, clinical frameworks, and implementation strategies that enable institutions and practitioners to embed respectful, patient-centred care at every level of service delivery, transforming not only clinical outcomes, but the lived experience of care for women, newborns, and families.
70%
OF guidelines ARE UNSUPPORTED by the highest levels of evidence
Only 30% of the recommendations in the American College of Gynecologists (ACOG) practice bulletins are based on the highest-quality available scientific evidence (REF). Similar statistics are reported for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' guidelines.
17yrs:
The DELAY BETWEEN NEW EVIDENCE AND CLINICAL IMPLEMENTATION
Women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. In the field of maternal care, an average of 17 years is estimated for original research to be translated into practice. This translates to millions of mothers and newborns needlessly subjected to proven inferior care.
96%
Some maternal deaths are preventable
This shocking statistic is driven by outdated practices, obstetrical violence, insufficient staffing, access and poor staff skills.
Care in What We Do
As a knowledge broker, Acadia empowers clients with consolidated, up-to-date research reviews that specifically relate to the types of care offered by your institution. We offer capacity building programs, implementation strategies and other tools to inform decision making, policy and practice decisions.
Acadia can also facilitate, monitor and report on implementation, in both early introductory and long term time frames.
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Care for Our Partners
As consultants and implementing partners, we work directly with Government Agencies, NGOs, Medical Facilities, and individual Medical Practitioners to design, implement, and evaluate sustainable maternal and newborn health initiatives.
“Our philosophy as clinicians, researchers and educators is based on the premise that an evidence-based, trauma-informed and woman-centred care practice not only preserves the dignity of women, but also the dignity of the practitioner.”
- Mélanie V. Chevarie, Founder & Director, Acadia
Our Founder
Mélanie Chevarie, B.Sc., MEHP, CPM, LM, is a global health specialist and a primary care midwife with expertise in out-of-hospital obstetrical emergencies, curriculum design, and international capacity building, guiding the clinical and academic standards of Acadia Global Institute for Midwifery and Women’s Health
Let’s work together
Acadia partners with institutions and individuals in a range of activities and regions, working onsite, via the internet and in partnership with other consultants and firms.
Let’s work together to change the fate of women and newborns around the world.