C3 - Community Leadership of Maternal Health Initiatives in NYC

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Full Description: In NYC, Black women die from pregnancy complications at eight times the rate, and Latinx women die at twice the rate of White women. To address these preventable racial and ethnic maternal health disparities, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC-DOHMH) and the New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM) are turning to birthing persons and individuals from minoritized groups. Presenters will share the process, outcomes, strengths and challenges of three initiatives undertaken over the past five years to uplift community voices, expertise, and solutions for developing a maternal health system in NYC that serves all equally. This workshop is ideal for individuals from organizations wishing to engage and uplift community leadership and expertise in developing policy solutions to improve maternal health outcomes.

In the first initiative, the NYC-DOHMH’s Sexual Reproductive Community Engagement Group collaborated with communities across the five boroughs to develop the NYC Standards for Respectful Care at Birth. This presentation will describe the process of giving community members the platform and resources to develop a document that outlines six human rights (i.e., education, informed consent, decision making, quality of care, support, and dignity and non-discrimination). We will also describe how the DOHMH is actively working to disseminate this document to birthing persons and maternal health institutions across the city.

In the second initiative, the DOHMH utilized the NYC Standards to provide a birth justice training and technical assistance webinars to providers at 14 maternity hospitals. Over 80 staff were trained and almost 700 participated in advancing birth justice webinars. Trainings resulted in improved knowledge and awareness of reproductive justice principles, and improved provider attitudes towards respectful care practices and a person-centered approach to caring for pregnant and parenting people. This presentation will describe the educational intervention as a model for engaging providers working with minoritized populations on the association between historical birth injustices and present-day structural racism and obstetric violence. This intervention also presents an opportunity to equip maternal health providers with patient-centered strategies to support respectful care and improved patient experiences.

In the third initiative, the DOHMH partnered with NYAM to collaborate with community groups and maternal health professionals to share their vision for maternal health in NYC – these conversations resulted in the development of a model for a continuum of maternal health care in NYC. This presentation will describe the process of outreach, implementation and analysis of virtual community conversations conducted in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole languages; as well as plans for continued dissemination of the community-developed model for a continuum of care.

Abbreviated Description: To address racial and ethnic maternal health disparities, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the New York Academy of Medicine are turning to birthing persons and individuals from minoritized groups. Presenters will share the process, outcomes, strengths and challenges of three community-led initiatives: 1) the development of the NYC Standards for Respectful Care at Birth; 2) training of 80 staff at 14 maternity hospitals; and 3) community development of a model for care, to uplift community voices, expertise, and solutions for developing a maternal health system in NYC that serves all equally. This workshop is ideal for those wishing to engage and uplift community leadership and expertise in developing policy solutions to improve maternal health outcomes.