Start Early works to close the maternal health gap

May Towers is the Senior Program manager for the Home Visiting and Doula Network at Start Early. PHOTO PROVIDED BY START EARLY.
May Towers is the Senior Program manager for the Home Visiting and Doula Network at Start Early. PHOTO PROVIDED BY START EARLY.

Start Early works to close the maternal health gap

By Tia Carol Jones

According to National Partnership, Black women are three to four times more likely to experience pregnancy-related death than white women; they are more likely to experience preventable maternal death compared with white women; and their heightened risk of pregnancy-related death spans income and education levels.

Start Early is working to address maternal health inequities in Chicago, with programs for mothers and their babies, both prenatally and postnatally.

Start Early was founded more than 40 years ago, servicing families on the South side of Chicago as Ounce of Prevention, with the mission to provide support for developing children and their families. Since then, it has expanded to 25 states.

“We believe that every child deserves the opportunity to reach their fullest potential in life,” said Mary Towers, Senior Program manager for the Home Visiting and Doula Network at Start Early.

Towers agreed that Black maternal and infant health is an important public health issue and an unacceptable health crisis, considering the rate of maternal and infant mortality. In the United States, maternal and infant mortality continue to climb, despite continued advances in the medical field and technology. Women of color, especially Black women, experience disproportionate maternal health outcomes compared to their white counterparts. Towers described the statistics as disturbing.

Start Early is working with community leaders and other experts to create a sense of urgency amongst the public to act and drive systemic change, so that thousands of birthing parents, unborn babies and all children in their earliest years can thrive. The organization has a dedicated policy and advocacy team that works closely with legislation and state leaders to come up with accountability, to improve maternal and infant health inequities.

Start Early also partners directly with communities to provide direct services to pregnant women and new parents who live in under resourced communities in the city. It does this by working with families to promote health through pregnancy, childbirth and postnatal care. One way it does this is by providing doula and home visiting services.

Some reasons for the high rates of Black maternal and infant mortality rates, Towers said, is a predisposition to high rates of disease – preeclampsia, high blood pressure, gestational diabetes – as well as the impact of racism and how it negatively impacts health and wellness for Black birthing individuals.

“Black women experience disproportionate access to maternal health, which puts them at increased risk for poor maternal and infant health outcomes, compared to their white counterparts,” Towers said, adding the structural racism and barriers that put people of color at a disadvantage – interpersonal biases, discrimination that results in differential treatment of people based on race. “For example, pain is often underassessed and undertreated in Black women who seek help from their healthcare providers.”

Towers said there is an ethical responsibility for individuals to promote a climate of culturally responsive healthcare systems, that optimize every women’s health and practices that promote equity for all. She added that, 85% of maternal and infant death are preventable. Prenatal and postnatal services are essential to maternal health outcomes because they promote healthy live births and enhance self- advocacy for mothers.

For more information about Start Early, visit https://www.startearly.org.

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