POST-BIRTH Warning Signs Education Program

Why Is Postpartum Discharge Training Essential for Nurses and Clinicians? 

The POST-BIRTH Warning Signs online course and program resources educate nurses and clinicians about postpartum maternal morbidity and mortality crises in the United States, and provides a respectful, evidence-based approach to postpartum pre- and post-discharge education for all patients, regardless of risk factors.

Please take a moment to review the narrative of Joan Donnelly’s journey unfolding through the lens of her husband, who expresses a desire for greater awareness about POST-BIRTH complications, their recognition, and the necessary steps for seeking treatment.

Joan Donnelly’s Postpartum Preeclampsia Story

This video is provided courtesy of our partners at the Preeclampsia Foundation. It was originally presented at the 2016 Patient Safety Movement’s Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit to highlight the need to optimize obstetric safety. Produced by the Preeclampsia Foundation and the Patient Safety Movement.

Revised POST-BIRTH Warning Signs Education Now Available

Updated in December 2023, this online course provides participants with strategies to educate patients and their families to recognize POST-BIRTH warning signs and reducing their risk for postpartum complications.  Learning Objectives:

• Analyze the negative consequences of racial, ethnic, and geographic inequities and social determinants of health on maternal health outcomes and how they relate to maternal mortality in the United States.
• Identify potentially life-threatening complications using AWHONN’s POST-BIRTH acronym and when immediate attention is required.

Learn more from our education town hall on the program:

Here’s What You Need To Know: 

Pricing:

Full Member, Lifetime, Emeritus: $32 per seat​
Student Member: $32 per seat​
E-Member: $42 per seat​
Nonmember: $52 per seat​

Nursing Contact Hours
1.0 nursing contact hour (NCPD activity available through 12/1/2026)

NCC Codes: The codes listed are based on the NCC coding books. Please check to ensure codes are correct before submitting for maintenance.
INP – Inpatient Obstetric Nursing Recovery and Postpartum (Code 4)
MNN – Maternal Newborn Nursing Postpartum Assessment, Management and Complications (Code 2)
WHNP – Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner Complications of Pregnancy (Code 2)

Contact Us

Volume sales inquiry (for price information or a group quote): productsales@awhonn.org
Permissions inquiry (to reuse our copyrighted material): permissions@awhonn.org
Online Learning Center questions (for admin access or to enroll learners): learning@awhonn.org

AWHONN Accreditation Statement
Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. Accredited status does not imply endorsement by AWHONN or the American Nurses Credentialing Center of any commercial products displayed or discussed in conjunction with an educational activity.

AWHONN is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider #CEP580.

Resources for Clinicians

Download the Newly Revised Save Your Life Parent Handouts – Available in Multiple Languages

These handouts are not designed to act as stand-alone products, but as a resource provided after completion of the POST-BIRTH Warning Signs Education Course. AWHONN permits clinicians to print copies of the Save Your Life handouts free of charge if the handout is being used as part of patient care and/or patient discharge or post-discharge education. For all other uses, view the POST-BIRTH Warning Signs Permissions Policy.

Save Your Life Vinyl Clings, Magnets, and Magnet Templates 

AWHONN offers clinicians the ability to purchase Save Your Life vinyl clings, magnets, or templates, as an additional parent resource to reinforce your post-birth discharge education.

Pre-made packs of 50 are available in English and Spanish for both the vinyl clings and magnets. Magnet templates are now available in 23 languages.

POST-BIRTH Warning Signs Success Stories

An Interview with a New Mother

Hear a mother’s story that shows how teaching women to recognize potentially life-threatening signs of post-birth complications can save lives.

A Clinician’s Story

Malinda Isbell RNC-OB, BSN, Director of The Birthplace for me
St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center
Estimated 365 births per year