Structural Racism Harms Black Iowa Women's Maternal Health
The Black Women's Maternal Health Conference explores reasons for health disparities, poor outcomes and ways to mitigate the issues.
Black Iowa women face many health care disparities — with systemic racism at the root — that harm them before, during and after their pregnancies, according to health professionals participating in the Black Women's Maternal Health Conference today.
"We see that women of color are experiencing higher rates of severe maternal morbidity than white women in the state," said Nalo Johnson, division director for health promotion and chronic disease prevention at the Iowa Department of Public Health. “So regardless of your income level, we recognize that there are higher risks and related risks to severe maternal morbidity within Iowa for women of color.”
Speakers shared sobering statistics, including:
Black women in Iowa are 6 times more likely to experience a maternal death than whites.
Black women also have the highest rates of preterm births in the U.S.
50% of deaths in Iowa happen postpartum.
Black women who have pregnancy induced hypertension are 10 times more likely to die than whites.
68% of Black women had their first prenatal visit during their first trimester, compared with 87% of whites.
69% of Black women breastfed during hospital discharge, compared with 84% of whites.
7% of Black women had gestational diabetes.
8% of Black women smoked in their 3rd trimester, compared with 10% of whites.
Across all women of color, the incidence of severe maternal mortality is 166% higher than white women.
The U.S. has “the highest maternal mortality rate amongst all high-income countries,” Johnson said.
“Black maternal health disparities are of a social-political origin and not biological and unfortunately the system is working the way it was intended to,” said Lastacia Coleman, a clinical assistant professor in the Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa.
“Racism is a huge problem in outcomes,” she said. “We have to work everyday to come up with solutions and change how we do things.”
Even tennis legend Serena Williams experienced complications after the birth of her daughter when a nurse didn’t take her breathing symptoms seriously.
Conference experts discussed how structural racism affects black women and presented health care data centered around maternal morbidity, mortality and health care disparities. The experts also discussed the role of doulas in helping Black Iowa women have healthy pregnancies and deliveries.
Johnson said the state is seeking a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Minority Health for a doula program that will be used to reduce health disparities in Black women in five title agencies.
“We are very excited to be able to embrace these innovative strategies and work alongside our Black doulas in the state,” Johnson said.
Session topics included racial disparities in maternity care, midwifery and doulas, reproductive freedom and reproductive justice, among others.
The conference, being held today via video conferencing, is organized by the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, among other groups.
Last update: 3:05 p.m. Final version.