COVID 19 | natcolmid-copy

Updated 10/26/2020

Update on Virtual Clinical Experiences
As announced earlier this year, NARM will allow two virtual clinicals to apply to the Continuity of Care clinical requirements for CPM candidates and NARM Preceptor registrants for each Continuity of Care Client: one prenatal in the final trimester and one postpartum done anytime between 24 hours and six weeks post birth.

Guidelines for documentation are available at NARM.org.

NARM has extended this allowance to be in place for clinicals between March 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021.
Extensions or modifications will be at the discretion of the NARM Board of Directors.

REQUIRED: COVID-19 Disclosure for Learning Site Safety

On 4/1/2020, NCM sent out to all students and preceptors an email through Mailchimp outlining NCM's Learning Site Guidance and Disclosure. It is a REQUIREMENT that all students and preceptors read this and follow the instructions for signing the disclosure. Until both the student and preceptor sign the COVID-19 Learning Site Disclosure the dyad is restricted from in-person contact with or without clients. If you did not receive the email, please check your spam folder or click here for a pdf version.

NCM Surveys

NCM has published two surveys for current students and preceptors. The first asks about the impact of COVID-19 on their academic and clinical experiences; fill it out here. The second survey will help NCM track the financial impact to preceptors and students as well as completion rates so that we can respond accordingly; fill this second survey out here.

Support For Adjusting Plans of Completion

We understand that students' plans of completion are being affected by COVID-19. Students are invited to join a zoom meeting to discuss how to use the graphic plan of completion on Friday, April 3rd, and get answers to their questions about creating a flexible yet robust way forward with academic studies and clinical experiences. These events can be found on the NCM Public Calendar where links to the zoom meetings are provided in the notes section of each event.

Department of Health Orders

Every state is continually amending health orders based on the developing circumstances related to COVID 19 in that state. All students and preceptors should go to their state’s Department of Health website to check for updates daily so that they can abide by those orders and advise their clients of updated orders. You can find a link to your state's Health Department's Coronavirus (COVID-19) website here.

You can find an overview of all state's mandates and links to more information about specific state mandates here.

Resources Regarding COVID 19 in Pregnancy

Please check The National College of Midwifery Facebook page which is being updated regularly with important notifications and resources regarding COVID.

NCM is also continually updating a free course called COVID-19 Midwifery Resources. Please reference this course on a regular basis to access the most recent information and feel free to share the link widely with anyone who might benefit from this free course. https://ncm.catalog.instructure.com/

Telehealth

CURRENTLY, NARM will allow two virtual clinicals to apply to the Continuity of Care clinicals for each Continuity of Care Client: one prenatal in the final trimester and one postpartum done anytime between 24 hours and six weeks post birth. UNDER ALL OTHER CIRUMSTANCES, CLINICAL EXPERIENCE DONE THROUGH AN ONLINE PLATFORM CANNOT COUNT ANY TOWARDS YOUR CLINICAL NUMBERS. NCM will continue to advocate for them to create a policy that better meets the needs of the current situation. NCM encourages you to keep track of clinicals done through Telehealth in case policies change in the future. Students can find Telehealth clinical tracking forms in the Canvas Course titled Forms, Grades, and Clinical Signatures.

Online Campus Management System Classe 365

The NCM team has been working behind the scenes for 10 months on our campus management system, Classe365, and rolled out the system a couple of months earlier than we had planned in order to meet emerging needs caused by the COVID crisis.

NCM’s new system allows many operations to be streamlined and automated and will reduce the need for paper and face-to-face interactions so that we can accommodate stay at home orders and social distancing practices. All students and preceptors have been given instructions on how to access Classe365. If you are needing technical support with this, please reach out to cassaundraj@midwiferycollege.edu.l

Online Student Submissions

ASM students are now required to submit signed and scanned clinical forms and student records within the Canvas Course titled “Forms, Grades, and Clinical Signatures” and have been provided with instructions for how to do this. This removes the need to mail in items to the office (no more losing things in the mail, faster processing time, and in the age of COVID less risk to everyone).

BSM Students will send their scanned and signed student records directly to Cassaundra.

We hope to roll out an online grade and preceptor signature system during summer 2020 which will include real time access to your updated student record.

Online Study Groups

In the world of COVID-19, the world needs midwives more than ever! NCM has been brainstorming ways to support students to more efficiently move through their academic requirements so that they can be solidly prepared to join the workforce as soon as possible. NCM has set up a structure within Canvas for students from any location to be able to join course specific study groups and share assignments. Within the group structure collaborative documents can be used, files can be shared and discussions engaged in. We have also created a study group policy to help dyads decide if assignment division is right for them and if so, how to organize this structure with your support. Please email cassaundraj@midwiferycollege.edu to participate.

ASM Online NCM tests now available

We understand that preceptors are busier than ever at this time and we want to help ease the stress proctoring and grading can cause. As such, we have developed new options for students to complete testing.

Option 1: Same as it has always been - preceptor downloads the exam and gives it to the student, then grades it using the keys provided on the website.

Options 2 and 3: All students have been enrolled in a course called All ASM Tests. Within this course is every test students are required to complete during the ASM program. There are two options: the student will either be allowed only one attempt to take the exam or will be allowed multiple attempts and will keep their highest score. The time saving-benefit to either of these routes is that the system grades the tests for you.

Changes to NCM Office Operations

Office staff have brought the technology and equipment necessary for the operations of NCM to their homes so they can work remotely. If a trip to the office is deemed “absolutely necessary”, the staff will only be in the office one at a time. All travel related to NCM operations will be cancelled until further notice. We are still committed to keeping the lines of communication open and responsive.

Library Policy Changes

Due to COVID we are anticipating an increased demand for library items. In response, NCM is updating and adapting our lending policy. NCM is closing our mailing library so that we limit exposure for staff and mail carriers. However, we have created two resources to counter the effects of this decision:

We have created a community forum for lending on our website. Please consider posting what books you can share locally and what books you would like to borrow. Visit this new capability and our new bulletin board here: www.midwiferycollege.edu/forum.
We have created an online digital library of our textbooks in Amazon.

The new lending policy during the COVID emergency is as follows: each student may only borrow books for a max of one class if they are in block 1, two classes for block 2 and 3, and three classes for block 4 students. Books are lent for a maximum of 14 days if there are people waiting for the same book.

Each book will have 6 copies available. Please consider making a small donation to the College as purchasing digital copies for lending was not in our planned budget.

Student IDs and Shelter in Place Exemptions

All students on March 18 were given access to NCM identification cards and a personal email letter asking that they be unrestricted from sheltering in place in order to attend to clients. The Shelter in Place exemption letter is meant to offer general immediate assistance to those who need it. NCM recommends that you contact your local authorities to inquire what is currently needed (if you are currently living with a Shelter in Place order) or what will likely be needed in the case that a Shelter in Place order is instated. Since NCM has never had to issue this type of letter before, we are relying on you to let us know what your local authorities need. If you are concerned that the letter we are providing here will not satisfy the requirements of your local authorities, please contact president@midwiferycollege.edu with information about your specific needs.

NARM Testing

NARM is now able to offer remote testing. Please visit http://narm.org/ for more information.

CPR and NRP

AAP and AHA have issued guidelines which state that if your CPR or NRP expires in March, April or May of 2020, the expiration date will be extended for 60 days.

NARM has updated the policy for CPR and NRP requirements due to the ongoing challenges in obtaining hands on skills assessment courses due to COVID-19. If you are planning to submit your CPM recertification application or initial CPM application this year, please go to http://narm.org/ to read the updated policy.

As of January 1, 2021, all initial Certification and Recertification applications will need to meet NARM's pre-COVID NRP and CPR requirements. Many classes have pivoted to a hybrid of online/virtual section plus in-person skills testing to meet COVID-19 guidelines.

These hybrid courses will meet the NARM requirements in addition to traditional fully in-person courses available in some locations.

International Travel

The US Department of State has announced a Level 4 Health Advisory. NCM is following the CDC, US Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security recommendations for international travel. We are asking that all students who are currently studying abroad and those who were making plans to study abroad be aware of these recommendations and make decisions accordingly.

Students Currently Abroad:

NCM is following CDC recommendations for Institutes of Higher Education by strongly encouraging students currently studying abroad to return to their home country and to be aware that "students abroad may face unpredictable circumstances, travel restrictions, and challenges in returning home or accessing health care while abroad."

NCM is also following the Department of State recommendations that "in countries where commercial departure options remain available, U.S. citizens who live in the United States should arrange for immediate return to the United States, unless they are prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period."

Students who were planning to study abroad:

NCM is following the Department of State recommendations that U.S citizens are advised to "avoid all international travel due to the global impact of COVID-19....Many countries are experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks and implementing travel restrictions and mandatory quarantines, closing borders, and prohibiting non-citizens from entry with little advance notice....If you choose to travel internationally, your travel plans may be severely disrupted, and you may be forced to remain outside of the United States for an indefinite timeframe."

For more information, visit: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/ea/travel-advisory-alert-global-level-4-health-advisory-issue.html

Financial Strain

NCM understands that students will likely be experiencing financial hardship during this time. NCM will continue to bill as usual and will follow our regular policies around billing but asks that you contact Clorinda at clorindar@midwiferycollege.edu if you need to discuss alternatives to your current payment plan.

Supporting Efficient Completion of the Program

The world is in immediate need of midwives more than ever before! If you have completed all of your clinicals and are only need to complete academic credits, please contact Cassaundra at cassaundraj@midwiferycollege.edu. We are currently brainstorming ways to support efficient academic completion.

For more information on NARM requirements —

Contact them via 888-842-4784 or email ap plications@narm.org