Every year from April 11-17, the Black Mamas Matter Alliance leads Black Maternal Health Week, which is a time for everyone to focus on how we can join together and work to make pregnancy and early parenthood safer for Black people and their babies.

Race changes how a pregnant person experiences the healthcare system.

Black pregnant people are more impacted than pregnant people from other racial groups by healthcare inequities, which mean they are more likely to:

1. have issues staying healthy
2. have issues accessing healthcare
3. experience a health problem
4. be hurt or die from a health problem (morbidity and mortality)

These problems are not because of anything that Black pregnant people have done “wrong.” They are caused by other things, like social drivers of health (the conditions, usually that you are born into, that affect how you live and grow) and bias (how a birth care provider–like a doctor, midwife, or nurse–might treat you, based on certain beliefs they have). 

Even though pregnancy-related death is becoming less common, Black women are still over 3 times more likely than women from other racial groups to die in pregnancy or after birth. Research shows that most of these deaths are preventable.

Racial bias doesn’t just affect physical health–it affects your mental and emotional health, too.

A person who is Black and pregnant is more likely to have their baby too early (preterm labor) or even die (stillbirth or neonatal death), have trouble controlling their blood sugar (gestational diabetes) or blood pressure (hypertension, which is part of a dangerous pregnancy issue called preeclampsia), and more. That doesn’t mean the only danger in pregnancy is physical– how you are treated during pregnancy can hurt you emotionally.

Black pregnant people report higher rates of mistreatment and disrespect than their non-Black peers. Research shows that Black women are most likely to say that they want to lead decisions around their pregnancy, birth, and care of their baby, but they are the racial group least supported to make their own choices. For these and other reasons, Black women are twice as likely as white women to experience a pregnancy-related mental health issue… but they are half as likely to get help if they have one. 

These facts can be scary to read, but research has shown we have ways to help fight these problems. Black communities have long led efforts to address these inequities and have been clear about what safe, respectful care should look like. When we listen to what Black communities say they need and act on it, we can build a system that truly supports Black parents and their babies.

Culturally-matched doula care can help protect you from harm.

Research shows that patients may have improved health outcomes if their healthcare provider shares their racial background– something that has many names, including culturally-congruent care, culturally-concordant care, and culturally-matched care (that’s what we call it at the Community Doula Program). A doula who is from the same culture as you will understand things that you would have to explain to someone who isn’t. 

Not only that, research shows that, with doula care, you’re more likely to:

1. experience a low-intervention birth
2. be satisfied with your birth
3. have a more alert infant right after birth
4. start breastfeeding your baby, and do it for longer

In other words, you and your baby may be healthier, and you may be happier.

Your doula can advocate for you, meaning they help you tell your wants and needs to your birth care provider. This makes it more likely that you get treated how you want to be treated during your birth. Overall, a doula can help you feel and be safer, despite problems you may face in pregnancy and birth.

Birth care providers can lower the risk of bad outcomes by partnering with doulas.

If you are a birth care provider, recognize that doula care is a powerful mitigating factor– the research is clear that a doula helps reduce the chance of experiencing outcomes that you want to avoid, too. You and your patient’s doula have the same goal in mind: that your patient and their baby emerge from birth healthy and well. 

Almost half of Black women express wanting a birth care provider who shares their background, and the majority say it was difficult to find one. When you do not share the same racial background as your patient, a culturally-matched, community-based doula can provide them with additional benefits during their perinatal experience. If your patient qualifies for Oregon Health Plan, consider referring them to be matched with a Traditional Health Worker from the Community Doula Program.