The Clinical and Translational Science Collaborative (CTSC) of Northern Ohio partnered with 25 sponsors and over 35 collaborators to host the first Black Maternal Health Equity Summit in our region.
Attended by 450 people, in-person at Cleveland State University’s Student Center Glasscock Ballroom and via livestream, the energy was infectious and passion was palpable for advancement of Black maternal health equity. This event took place during Black Mamas Matter Alliance’s Black Maternal Health Week that takes place annually, from April 11-17.
Participants heard live jazz sounds from The Michael Austin Project. Vibrant pink and yellow floral arrangements from Plantscaping adorned each table to mirror the potential for growth, goal of life, and future collaborations that will bloom from this convening. McKinley Wiley, owner of The Dark Room Co.; Elaine Manusakis, owner of Every Angle; CoCreative CLE; and our Assistant Director of Research Content and Production, John Dannug, memorialized the event with photography and videography.
Keynote speaker, Dr. Deirdre Cooper Owens, touched down in Cleveland for the second time within six months, after visiting in October 2023 to launch the CTSC’s 2nd Annual Health Equity Challenge Series’ book discussion. Dr. Cooper Owens is the author of Medical Bondage: Race, Gender, and the Origins of American Gynecology—the featured text for the book discussion. The CTSC has purchased 600 copies of this text to date from ThirdSpace Reading Room, a local, independent, Black-owned bookstore. Dr. Cooper Owens emphasized, “You need to be aligned with people of a like mind and recognize that there is power in numbers. Lean on the strengths. If you know that there’s someone really good with public policy [...] someone really good with being in spaces where decisions are being made, try to assemble that.”
Voices of Mothers
Leadership from community-based organizations (CBOs), including the Village of Healing Center, Birthing Beautiful Communities, Pregnant with Possibilities Resource Center, First Year Cleveland, and ROOTT, shared praiseworthy metrics and outcomes regarding the impact that their respective programs and initiatives have for Black mothers and families.
“No one agency is going to solve this issue. No one healthcare system is going to solve this issue. It is a community effort. We know 80% is the social determinants, social drivers [...] and the other 20% is healthcare,” said Jazmin Long, President and CEO, Birthing Beautiful Communities. Birthing Beautiful Communities received a $2M Mackenzie Scott Yield Giving Grant that will support equity for Black mothers regionally.
“We decided that we wanted to walk away from the system and create our own system,” Da’na Langford, CEO and Medical Director of Village of Healing Center, shared. “We have continued to show that we are the solution to traditional healthcare. Since January of 2024, we were at over 700 visits, [...] a 95% full-term birth rate.” Langford’s vision is that by centering Black women and families through provision of culturally-sensitive care from Black providers, racial health disparities will be eliminated.
“ROOTT has maintained a Black infant mortality of 0% of live births,” exclaimed Bryttani Debro, Director of Programs, ROOTT. ROOTT is a Black-led reproductive justice organization that was behind Ohio House Bill 33 that calls for Medicaid coverage of doula expenses.
Richard Stacklin, Senior Director of Community Impact, Continuous Improvement, Evaluation, and Sustainability highlighted that First Year Cleveland was awarding six (6) $50,000 grants to organizations doing grassroots work to advance reproductive health. First Year Cleveland is a public-private coalition focused on decreasing the infant mortality rate.
Learn about each CBO that is effecting change for Black maternal health here.
Who better to talk about the experience of Black mothers than Black mothers? We invited 18 mothers to share their stories—centering their voices and lived experience—to ground what we learned about the history of gynecology and organizations that are doing something to effect positive change for Black maternal health. Most of the mothers received services and support from one or more of the CBOs at the BMHES.
Hear from one subject matter expert mom, Brittany Barron, Associate General Counsel, Cleveland State University, here.
Research and Policy Are Poised to Make Sustainable Change for Black Maternal Health
“The need for Black providers has been discussed in medical practice. It is paramount to addressing these long standing disparities in healthcare. This is also the focus of our research at the Village of Healing Center,” Dr. Heather Rice explained. Dr. Rice is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at Cleveland State University, pediatric nurse practitioner, and researcher who works with Birthing Beautiful Communities, Pregnant with Possibilities Resource Center, and the Village of Healing Center.
Dr. Shannon Walker discussed food insecurity in pregnancy. She emphasized that community organizations help fill gaps and that academic partnerships can help inform research findings to advocate for policy change. Dr. Walker is a board member of Pregnant with Possibilities Resource Center.
Natasha Takyi-Micah, a Public Policy and External Affairs Associate at The Center for Community Solutions, explained the concept of weathering. She defined “weathering” as when an individual is constantly experiencing discrimination, racism, and stress where those factors can lead to premature aging in the body and negative health outcomes. Taykyi-Micah also shared a policy update regarding doulas and how they will be reimbursed through Medicaid based on Ohio House Bill 33.
Pete Haak, Data Analyst from the MIchigan DHHS PRAMS Team, focused on one question from the PRAMS survey for his presentation. The question read, “During the 12 months before your new baby was born, how often did you feel that you were treated worse than people of other races or cultures?” He emphasized that everyone should be checking “never”. Overall, 1/13 mothers reported being treated worse in health care because of their race or culture.
Each update was approximately five minutes. Hear from all of the presenters for the Research and Policy Highlights, Challenges, and Opportunities segment here.
What’s Next?
- The Center for Community Solutions has fact sheets (i.e., based on counties, Cleveland wards, status of women, council districts, and Ohio legislative districts) that you can use to advocate and engage with policymakers.
- The CTSC launched READI, Set, BRACE, a first-of-its-kind experience that will compensate faculty, clinicians, and community members who want to build equitable and sustainable relationships with each other for the purpose of preparing to apply for a funding opportunity to support a research project or study focusing on Black maternal health. Eligibility was based on participation in the BMHES and completing an application. The program launched on Monday, May 20.
- Participants were encouraged to work on a draft Roadmap to Impact as the final activity at the Summit. The Roadmap to Impact is a one-page brainstorm document that was created by Washington University in St. Louis and is part of their Translational Science Benefits Model toolkit. We look forward to supporting our growing research community with navigating the path from idea or question to research to translational science benefits impact like policy.
View the digital program here.
