Susanna R. Cohen is an associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, a practicing midwife, and founder and director of the LIFT Simulation Design Lab within the ASCENT Center for Sexual and Reproductive Health. She is a national and global leader in simulation, experiential learning and implementation science focused on advancing the quality, equity and experience of pregnancy and birth care.

For more than 20 years, she has partnered with patients, clinicians, health systems and communities across the rural United States, Latin America, Africa and South Asia to ensure that evidence-based simulation and team training are accessible, affordable and scalable. She co-founded PRONTO International and invented the PartoPants™, a low-cost hybrid birth simulator that has supported the training of more than 15,000 providers in 22 countries. Through participatory design and experiential learning, she creates spaces where providers can practice difficult conversations, confront bias and strengthen collaboration across disciplines. Her work has contributed to measurable improvements in teamwork, respectful maternity care and neonatal outcomes in resource-limited settings.

Her NIH-funded research develops and evaluates interventions designed to reduce stigma and strengthen care for pregnant patients with HIV and substance use disorder. In Utah, she collaborates with statewide quality initiatives, EMS systems and hospital teams to redesign care processes, enhance interprofessional communication and improve maternal health outcomes.

Cohen’s work centers the human dimensions of care—recognizing that when providers are supported, prepared and connected, patients receive safer, more equitable and more compassionate care. She continues to practice as a midwife at UHealth, where her clinical work informs her teaching, research and systems-level partnerships.