Equipping Frontline Health Providers to Save Mothers' Lives

At the heart of Muso’s mission lies a bold and urgent commitment: to end preventable maternal and child deaths by ensuring that every patient receives the care they need in time. In partnership with governments and communities, we work tirelessly each day to turn this vision into reality.

A patient and her child in Côte d’Ivoire

One of the leading causes of maternal death in Côte d’Ivoire and across the world is postpartum

hemorrhage (PPH): severe bleeding after childbirth. PPH can progress and kill within hours, often before mothers can reach a hospital, access blood transfusions, or receive surgical care. This is where an innovative, life-saving tool, the non-pneumatic anti-shock garment (NASG), is transforming outcomes for mothers.

The NASG is a reusable device that resembles a wetsuit. When wrapped around the lower body, it applies gentle, sustained pressure that stabilizes a woman in shock by shunting blood to vital organs. Crucially, it can be applied immediately at the community or clinic level, buying precious time and preventing maternal deaths during those critical hours of emergency transport to higher-level facilities. 

NASG modeled on a health provider during training

Recognizing the NASG’s potential to save lives, Muso is working with government and district partners to ensure that every provider who may encounter a hemorrhaging mother knows how to use it confidently and correctly. 

In August, Muso in collaboration with the UCSF Safe Motherhood Program organized two intensive clinical training sessions in the health districts of Adzopé and Madinani - part of an ongoing effort to reinforce NASG skill and onboard new providers. More than 50 nurses and midwives from general hospitals and primary care clinics participated, focusing on detecting, managing, and responding to life-threatening complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Facilitated by senior district health officials alongside Muso’s clinical training teams, the curriculum was tailored to local realities, drawing from perinatal death audits, facility observations, and district assessments.

Participants engaged deeply with maternal and newborn health topics, including the management of obstetric complications such as PPH and acute fetal distress. The NASG took center stage, with hands-on simulations and case discussions that built provider confidence around when and how to apply the garment, when to remove it, and how to coordinate care during transport. The training also reinforced complementary emergency skills, including neonatal resuscitation and emergency obstetric protocols.

Beyond technical practice, the sessions created space for open dialogue, identifying system-level barriers such as gaps in supply chains, equipment shortages, and coordination challenges that can delay care. As a result, participants developed clear next steps: ensuring consistent stocks of emergency medications and diagnostics, equipping new primary care sites with NASGs, and organizing follow-up sessions for newly recruited providers. Supervision visits are planned for October and December, alongside ongoing data reviews to track PPH cases and NASG usage and ensure timely intervention.

These sessions exemplify Muso’s comprehensive approach to health system strengthening rooted in clinical excellence, delivered in close collaboration with district authorities. As we advance toward universal health coverage, building the capacity of frontline providers remains one of the most effective ways to prevent maternal deaths.