Black Maternal Health Week addresses disparities, educates communities on Staten Island

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — To mark Black Maternal Health Week, the Community Health Center of Richmond, Inc. hosted a forum in its Stapleton location on Wednesday to spotlight disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes and the role of community support in closing the gap.

Mothers shared testimonies, professionals educated attendees on the roles of doulas and self-advocacy in healthcare settings, while also highlighting the importance of increasing father or partner involvement in breastfeeding support and education.

“Our lived experiences, to me, is the only that’s going to help people understand and make change,” said Henry Thompson, PhD, CEO of CHCR, Inc.

CHCR, Inc. operates health centers in Stapleton and Port Richmond, offering affordable, culturally competent and quality primary health care, according to their website.

The impact of doula support for birthing mothers

Adrian Clarke, a new mother to her eight-month-old son, shared her testimony as a client of CHCR, Inc. during her maternity journey.

“I was more nervous than excited about finding out I was pregnant because I’ve gone through a loss before,” Clarke said. “When I came here, I got a care team — a mid-wife, a doula and a case manager. From when I found out I was pregnant, to having the baby, to post the baby, even now, they still check in. They were super encouraging throughout my journey.”

Marcia Santiago has been a doula for nearly eight years with Healthy Women, Healthy Futures, an initiative offering free doula care to low-income communities across all five boroughs of New York City. on Staten Island, the program is offered through CHCR, Inc.

“When I started in 2017, we were serving about 40 birthing families a year. As of April this year, we already served over 200,” Santiago said. “This is so important especially for families of color because they are at the highest risk.”

Santiago, now the Director of Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Operations at CHCR, Inc., discussed how doulas help close care gaps in existing disparities by educating, empowering, and teaching clients to advocate for themselves and have their partners advocate for them. Doulas also assist in creating birth plans to reduce trauma, provide guidance and support during labor and childbirth, offer breastfeeding support, and help with newborn care.

According to the City Department of Health, people giving birth with the support of a doula are more likely to experience shorter labor, initiate breastfeeding earlier and breastfeed for longer, have positive feelings about their birth experience, and enjoy better parent-baby bonding.

Community engagement for breastfeeding education

Robert Robinson, Senior Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at CHCR, Inc. highlighted the importance of education and community engagement for men and fathers.

Robinson also serves as the project manager for the Brothers for Mothers initiative, a public health education campaign developed by CHCR, Inc. in partnership with the Alumni Chapters of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., focused on improving maternal and child health outcomes in communities of color.

“I didn’t know a thing about the importance of breastfeeding until I had an opportunity to engage in an initiative for breastfeeding education and started to do research about all the things that are in breast milk and how those things benefit your children,” he said. “Had I known then what I know now, I would’ve pushed harder for my first three children because after the first three months, they were on Similac and Enfamil.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), breastfeeding initiation, duration, and exclusivity rates in the United States are lower among infants of Black mothers compared to their White counterparts.

According to Robinson, the Brothers for Mothers initiative engaged 15 chapters of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. across the Northeast to provide breastfeeding education, intentionally bringing men of color into the conversation.

“Because we bear a responsibility for that as well,” Robinson said.

The initiative has expanded to 49 chapters nationwide, including six collegiate chapters on campuses. Robinson shared that the men in these chapters are conducting workshops in communities with the highest disparity rates.

“It’s been the feedback from the communities that has resonated because there has to be a culture shift and a mindset shift with regard to breastfeeding your baby,” he said. “For the men who are here in the room, it’s our responsibility to be more than just the person who helped to make the baby and to change diapers. It’s our responsibility to also be intimately involved in every aspect of a child’s development.”

The critical role of community health centers to address gaps in maternal healthcare

Wanda Montalvo, PhD, discussed how pregnancy-related deaths are trending in the wrong direction but emphasized viewing this issue not as a deficit, but as an opportunity to build on the strengths of the community.

According to a recently published article by the American Medical Association, pregnancy-related deaths increased from 25.3 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2018 to 32.6 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022.

“A lot of the things and the conditions as to why this occurs really are preventable. We have to look at the full journey of maternal health. A lot of these things occur after the woman gives birth… by up to one year later,” Montalvo said. “Where is the birthing person at that stage? They’re not at the hospital. They’re back in their communities.”

She added that this is why organizations like CHCR, Inc. and other health centers across the country play such a critical role in changing the trajectory for the community.

“Some of the solutions we heard today — which is the care coordination, having doulas, having midwives, having a whole clinical team, helping people understand the value of breastfeeding, understanding the warning signs, and how we work in partnership with our hospitals,” she said.

The event concluded with citations sent by local officials and leaders, including Mayor Eric Adams and Borough President Vito Fossella, awarded to a handful of individuals for their work in addressing Black Maternal Health.