AUTHOR=Beddoe Ann Marie , Reis Maureen , Benson Angela , Rehwaldt Lise , Mullbah John , Johnson Janetta , Lieber Molly , Dottino Andrew , Maund Corrine , Campbell Sara , Kerry Vanessa , Solomon Julie , Lieb Whitney , Brodman Michael , Gharoro Etedafe , Sayeed Sadath , Nuthulaganti Tej , Johnson Billy C. , Brown Jerry , Marshall Roseda , Dahn Bernice TITLE=Community-Institutional Partnerships to Strengthen Maternal Health Care: Case Study of the First Obstetrics and Gynecology Specialty Training Program in Liberia JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health VOLUME=9 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.779035 DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2021.779035 ISSN=2296-2565 ABSTRACT=

Despite major setbacks to its health infrastructure and health workforce capacity, Liberia began its first post-graduate training program for physicians in 2013. Specialty training in Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, General Surgery and Obstetrics and Gynecology were the four inaugural Residency programs that recruited graduates from the country's only medical school, A.M. Dogliotti College of Medicine. The Obstetrics and Gynecology residency program was designed to combat the rising maternal mortality and strengthen health systems to improve maternal care. The program adapted in the face of challenges posed by limited financial support, lack of specialist-faculty and general physician shortages and the Ebola virus outbreak. The manuscript discusses the challenges and successes of the program and demonstrates how the shortage of teaching faculty was addressed by developing a collaboration between local government and educational communities, a United States (US) academic institution and volunteers from the Global Health Service Partnership.