Maria Petrie, MHIT, BSN

Maria has supported birthing families as a doula, childbirth educator, and Registered Nurse/Birth Assistant at two CABC-accredited birth centers. She has a BSN from the Medical University of South Carolina, a BS in International Affairs and Modern Languages from Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Master’s in Healthcare Information Technology from the University of South Carolina. Maria is currently Chair of the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers.

Olga Ryan, RN, MSN

Olga has been an NRP instructor for more than 20 years and has been teaching NRP in the out-of-hospital birth setting since 2006. She is an experienced birth center leader having served as manager of the El Rio Birth & Women’s Health Center for 10 years and more recently as the director of Babymoon Inn, LLC in Tucson, AZ. She is active in AABC and CABC and has served in various roles in both organizations throughout her career.

Olga has served in nursing leadership positions in a variety of perinatal units since 1994, with a special interest in process improvement projects. She is a passionate birth center advocate who works with birth centers and EMS systems to improve clinical care and processes that serve the families and the caregivers within them.