By Kedrick Williams, DHA, MPH, Senior Rural Health Program Manager
During summer 2025, the Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center hosted the Maternal Health Observership Summer Program. This six-week intensive program showcased how passion, education and action can align to enhance maternal health care across rural Georgia. Participating scholars were students interested in obstetrics and gynecology and practicing in rural, medically underserved communities. This year, we welcomed nine Mercer medical students representing Macon, Columbus and Savannah campuses to participate in the fifth annual program.
Through shadowing visits at numerous rural clinics, health departments and hospitals, these students gained valuable insight into maternal health care opportunities in rural communities. Students attended and participated in our annual Maternal Health Symposium, which exposed them to health care providers and public health professionals for career networking and student advisement. With Mercer faculty and staff, students engaged in guided, problem-based research, offering exposure to public health practitioners and online data and resources built to address maternal health disparities.
Students also expanded their knowledge through participation in several simulations, including handwashing, surgical scrub technique, ultrasound, vaginal delivery and donning and doffing personal protective equipment, as facilitated by Mercer’s simulation clinical educator Kenya Jones, BS, RRT. Additionally, students developed an understanding of the role telemedicine serves in providing unique care options to underserved communities.
“Getting to see the reaction as moms heard their baby’s heartbeat after their struggles to conceive or after prior miscarriages was a beautiful thing,” said Mary Bridget Geralds, a rising second-year Mercer medical student from the Savannah campus. “For one patient in particular, we did an eight-week ultrasound, and she was so relieved when we showed her the heart fluttering and heard the heartbeat that she started crying. Seeing the physicians comfort patients in times of need, continue to care for them and then get to celebrate with them on some of their best days was truly amazing.”
Geralds’ clinical experience parallels the holistic perspective shared by Alexander Gomez, a rising second-year Mercer medical student from the Macon campus. He said, “One of the patients who had the most impact on me was a pregnant woman who walked from her home to her appointment in the extreme heat. She had no access to transportation but still made the journey on foot to receive care. I truly salute her strength and determination. Her story is both inspiring and heartbreaking. It reflects the serious barriers many women face in accessing basic prenatal care in Georgia. Her experience is a powerful reminder of the urgent need to improve maternal health access, especially in rural communities.”
It is because of eye-opening patient encounters like these that clinic shadowing is so vital to the development and maturation of well-rounded, gratitude-minded physicians. Empowering mentorship occurred from several preceptors who welcomed students, including Dr. Mark Boles, Dr. Lauren Lowery and Dr. Bill Chism Jr. (Laurens County); Dr. Sandra Brickman (Tift County); Dr. Keisha Callins (Jones and Twiggs counties); Dr. Johnny Christian (Burke County); Dr. Justin Peterson (Coffee County); and Dr. Eva Martin (Houston County).
Speaking on such mentorship, Isabel Luna, a rising second-year Mercer medical student from the Columbus campus, shared, “It was very impactful to see the importance of being a doctor who listens to patients’ difficulties, allows them to be emotionally vulnerable and works until they find a solution.”
Hands-on experiences were an important part of the summer program. Keisha Callins, MD, MPH, guided the students through a live mobile ultrasound experience with a Mercer School of Medicine volunteer who is pregnant with her third child, following the successful deliveries of two high-risk pregnancies.
Upson Regional Medical Center invited students to visit its labor and delivery unit, tour and learn about the hospital’s helicopter pad procedures, and have lunch with hospital executives to hear about the new women’s health center scheduled to open in spring 2026.
ObGyne Birthing Center for Natural Deliveries in Forsyth welcomed students to engage with Bola Sogade, MD, founder and OB-GYN, in a presentation on her career background and journey to building a birthing center in a rural Georgia town. Students also received a tour of the entire facility.
Students conducted translational research and proposed solutions on topics related to maternal health disparities. They presented their findings at the awards luncheon on July 25. Topics covered postpartum mental health, fertility and maternal care access, mobile health units, at-home Pap smear kits and maternal health care teams.
Reflecting on their summer experiences, students noted how the program enhanced their drive to become OB-GYNs serving rural Georgia. That was evident when Janiah Ryans, a rising second-year Mercer medical student from the Savannah campus, said:
“I witnessed my first delivery, which was both emotional and beautiful. The patient’s husband whispered affirmations, her mother responded to her every need without hesitation, and the doctor guided her through every step of the delivery. In that moment, I was reminded of Dr. Callins’ message at the symposium about the elephant’s protective circle mirroring how we should show up intentionally for mothers. That room was the embodiment of it. Witnessing such unity and care in one of life’s most vulnerable moments deeply moved me and affirmed my passion for maternal health.”