#SPEAKUP FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN AND BLACK WOMEN

It is unacceptable that Black and African American women are three to four times more likely to die during childbirth than women in all other racial and ethnic groups (CDC). The most recently published statistics show that there were 43.5 per 100,000 live births where Black women died compared to 12.7 deaths per 100,000 live births for white women and 14.4 deaths per 100,000 live births for women of other races. The Institute for Perinatal Quality Improvement is working to change this fact.One thing we can do to reduce pregnancy-related racial and ethnic disparities is to ensure that all women we take care of are treated with dignity and respect. But, according to the over 200 stories of maternal morbidity collected and reported by Nina Martin @ProPublica & Renee Montagne @NPR, African American and Black women feel "devalued and disrespected by medical providers." We can show more respect by making changes in how we converse with the women we take care of. We can also make sure that we speak respectfully about the women we are taking care of when conversing with our colleagues.Conversation is where change begins and we have the power to change the conversation.