Johnson Memorial Health’s Post

This is such an important proposal, and my hope is that when hospitals and communities are setting the standards for "quality care," they actually ask what that means to the communities they are serving. I did my MPH specialization with the local Perinatal Equity Initiative in California, with the goal of reducing the disparities in maternal and infant death rates for black moms in particular. As a NICU nurse who specialized in Quality Improvement in the hospital, it quickly became clear to me that what I considered the nursing interventions to improve health, were not necessarily going to be right for everyone, and that there were barriers to these women's health that I could not begin to understand. I needed to listen. I needed to understand the barriers that systemic racism were putting in place, and why there was distrust in the healthcare system. I love that hospitals will start to be held accountable for certain quality metrics, as they should, and I hope that effective Implicit Bias training for care providers is a strong part of the process. I learned so many things in my experience that I could never have possibly known without actually talking to people with the lived experiences that put things in perspective for me. Also learning that the higher women get in socioeconomic status, the larger the disparities in maternal death rate by race. So, an African-American lawyer living with all the medical care and resources, has 4 times the chance of dying in childbirth than a white woman lawyer with all the medical care and resources. This is taking into account all of the other potential confounding factors too. This fact struck me so hard, because I think a lot of people think that its "just socioeconomic status" and therefore that can't be fixed, or is too complex to be fixed. This shows that there actually is something much deeper going on. As did one woman telling me that she never had a single care provider seem happy for her about her pregnancy, and she was always met with judgement about keeping her baby, even though it was a planned pregnancy (which nobody ever asked.) This broke my heart as well. All of this to say, YAY for the new program, YAY for the Biden/Harris Administration, and for all of us providers out there- we need to see and listen to all of our patients.

I am very curious about the awareness and knowledge of the Biden-Harris Administration about the levels of maternity care established in originally in 2015, reaffirmed in 2019, and corrected in 2019 and 2023, by American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). From ACOG: The American Association of Birth Centers; the American College of Nurse-Midwives; the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses; the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers; and the Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology endorse this document. The American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Hospital Association support this document. The American Society of Anesthesiologists has reviewed this document. This document was developed jointly by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine in collaboration with Sarah J. Kilpatrick, MD, PhD; M. Kathryn Menard, MD, MPH; Christopher M. Zahn, MD; and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s representative William M. Callaghan, MD, MPH. The findings, conclusions, and views in this Obstetric Care Consensus do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the U.S. government. Below is the link to review the existing levels of maternity care and the robust list of various organizations and health professional organizations who endorsed and reviewed the levels of maternity care and the names and credentials of individual experts who co-developed the document with ACOG https://lnkd.in/eKbQd4Ge Below is the link to review the existing states who have implemented the levels of maternity since November 2020. https://lnkd.in/eWTb5-6d My initial response is to lead with curiosity, compassion, and critical analysis, how does this “first ever national standards of maternity health and safety” differ or align with the existing levels of maternity care?

Family physicians care for children, adults, and the elderly in outpatient and inpatient settings, and for patients throughout pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period. How does the scope of care change from early career family physicians compared to mid-or late career family physicians? Learn more in the Factbook: https://bit.ly/3Usekma #FMFactbookFriday

This is huge accomplishment! I appreciate each of you who have worked diligently on defining the guidelines for Maternal Health. I want to take this opportunity to emphasize that "cultural compentency" should be explored more deeply and broadly on these work. As a researcher who focuses on the intersection of gender, race and sexuality, my work demonstrate that information isn't enough to dismantle the cognitive barriers created by our social constructs of the identitary categories. This applies for both, patients and service providers. The potential here is to unveil structures and systems. The protocol manages the environment within institutions. However import and necessary, it does not dissipate all the complexities of the binomial identity-based relationships. The challenges in achieving equity requires more protocols that are built in interdisciplinarity and not silos of understanding and medical power and prevalence about Reproductive Health. As we recognize that access to health is an exercise of power within a social contract that weighs down minority voices and transfer the outcome result to the individual, hopefully we ask more questions. What is your work going to build upon this historic achievement to black women's health? One thing that comes to mind is that access to women's health is deeply associated to motherhood. We know equitable health outcomes is a challenge for women having a child and this historic moment reminds us of it. So, how is the the reproductive health of women who are not in bearing child age or does not go through pregnancies? What the need for this protocol tells you about them? p.s. reproductive health here is used beyond a biologic view of the women's health.

Join us for an online AIMS workshop. See our current planned AIMS Workshops here https://lnkd.in/dmgCHc6N 19th March - History of Maternity Care since 1950 - How did we get here? 12th April - Focus on Resolution 15th April - Focusing on Induction of Labour 13th May - The Foundation Stones for Supporting the Physiological Process in Pregnancy and Birth 21st May - Focus on Birth without Bias

Danielle Dolan AnneMarie Aquino Jacquelyn Allard I am familiar with many standards for mother and infant safety, and many best practices through supporting a Maternal Child Health Professional Governance Council, but I am far from an expert. That said, historically, women's care issues are understudied and underfunded, particularly for marginalized populations. Is a Federal effort to establish standards long overdue? How do we make certain that nurse experts - who are providing much of the care - contribute to developing and are educated in best practices? How do we ensure that nursing art and sciences, and true human interests are guiding this work and not lobbyist and special interests? How will this be funded and sustained? Will hospitals be asked to carry more financial burden, albeit for needed social reform? Further, we have "age friendly" and "baby friendly" designations - What are your thoughts of "birthing friendly?" As a feminist, I am earnest in promoting "woman friendly" designations as well, but I digress. Check out the blueprint here! https://lnkd.in/e28Gjstv

Aleeshia Huguley has a high-risk pregnancy in a county with limited maternity care access. She and her husband, Serkeith, worry about being far from the only birthing hospital in their area, which serves four counties. Their story highlights the broader issue of maternity care deserts in America. For millions of U.S. families, a healthy pregnancy depends on where they live. The March of Dimes' 2024 report, Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts in the US, shows that accessing quality maternity care is increasingly difficult, worsening the maternal and infant health crisis. Learn more and take action: https://lnkd.in/eem3QY-J

Where you live matters when it comes to the options available for maternity care. In a recent report from March of Dimes found that over 35% of US counties are maternity care deserts, affecting over 2.3 million women, highlighting how women living in maternity care deserts have poorer health before pregnancy, receive less prenatal care, and experience higher rates of preterm birth. Read the full report here:https://bit.ly/3XyAvIQ

If you'd like to guide your patients through the pregnancy journey but don't know where to start, then the 'But I Don't Do Maternity Care' CME is for you 🫄 We spoke to doctors who created and facilitated the course with us and UBC CPD, and doctors who took the course as learners, to show you how you can fit this fantastic do-at-your-own-pace course into your busy schedules 🗓️ Find the article here 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gVBQZCYa

Being at "advanced maternal age," patients 35 and older are usually cautioned about all types of pregnancy complications that can interfere with family planning. But that's not stopping a generation of people looking to delay pregnancy until later in life. In fact, the rates of people having babies between the ages of 40 and 44 have increased. If you hope to have a baby at any age — but especially after 35 — here's what you need to know: https://bit.ly/4a7hemP. Find an OB/GYN or midwife at hcamidwest.com/delivers.