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Quality maternal health care for all women is a growing concern, doulas help to make a positive difference

  • Aniya Faulcon
In this Aug. 7, 2018 photo, a doctor performs an ultrasound scan on a pregnant woman at a hospital in Chicago.

 Teresa Crawford / AP Photo

In this Aug. 7, 2018 photo, a doctor performs an ultrasound scan on a pregnant woman at a hospital in Chicago.

Airdate: October 13, 2022

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According to the World Health Organization, every day about 810 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy or childbirth and women of color are disproportionately effected by this issue.

The estimated national maternal mortality rate in the United States is about 17 per 100,000 live births––but it is about 43 per 100,000 live births for Black women.

Rae Johnson-Bundy, CEO of DoulaRightThing and certified doula, Madhumitha Rajakittu – Pudupatti, certified doula and CEO of Guiding Hand Doula, and Dr. Sharee Livingston, Obstetrics and Gynecology Chair at UPMC Lititz and co-founder of the Diversifying Doulas Initiative, joins us to talk about maternal health care and how doulas are a vital part in making it better.

Johnson-Bundy said she is asked ‘What’s a doula?’ a lot and this her response: “A doula is a professional birth worker that supports birth physically, emotionally, and they also give evidence based information.”

Johnson- Bundy and Rajakittu – Pudupatti said pregnant women face challenges with maternal health care like: racism, not being heard, lack of health knowledge, fears about survival, and more.

To combat these issues, Rajakittu – Pudupatti said,  pregnant women need to find a support team that they trust, ask questions, make sure their physician is the right fit and get a doula early on in pregnancy.

Dr. Livingston said, UPMC has a goal to focus on the day to day actions on their labor and delivery unit and diversify doulas through committees and initiatives that are in place to decrease maternal morbidity and mortality in vulnerable people.

“We’re ready to reclaim black birth so that we can bring back joy to black birth,” Dr. Livingston said. ” I like to say, stop, look and listen. Stop judging the patient, look them in the eyes and listen to what they have to say regarding long term solutions. And this is where organizations like UPMC, Penn Medicine and the larger organizations can prioritize health equity.”

 

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