According to the Centers for Disease Control, Black women are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related issue compared to white women.
Black Maternal Health Week, April 11-17, is a time to spotlight the issue and focus on solutions to reduce the disparities in maternal health care.
Health care providers addressing Black maternal health say part of improving outcomes for Black women can be a simple as listening.
Dr. Bethany Fosu, a medical officer with D.C. Health’s Community Health Administration, says it’s important for patients to feel they can connect with their health care provider.
“And feel like she’s being heard and feel like no matter what culture she’s coming from, she can be an advocate for her own health,” Fosu said.
When patients don’t feel comfortable with a provider, they may find navigating the health care system overwhelming, and if they feel their concerns are being dismissed, they may not feel sure “they can trust the information being given to them,” Fosu added.
Dr. Tarnisha Hemphill, a certified nurse midwife and assistant professor at George Washington University in the midwifery program, says having a diverse staff where patients see themselves reflected is helpful in establishing care.
Hemphill said having medical facilities that are accessible also matters.
“There are areas that are a maternity desert. There are certain areas that do not have maternity access and one of those areas was in DC — Ward 7, Ward 8,” she said, referring to neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River.
“Which is why it’s really monumental that we now have Cedar Hill (Regional Hospital) opening up, so that way, it can kind of help with that access that a lot of patients in that area are lacking.”
Last Wednesday was the grand opening of Cedar Hill Hospital, which replaces United Medical Center and provides the first labor and delivery facilities east of the river in nearly a decade.
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