Texas Tribune: Why are pregnancy and childbirth killing so many Black women in Texas?

Texas Tribune: Why are pregnancy and childbirth killing so many Black women in Texas?

A new Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee and Department of State Health Services Report is out and OBHG's Dr. Rakhi Dimino provided insights to the Texas Tribune for an article titled Why are pregnancy and childbirth killing so many Black women in Texas?

Regarding discrimination as a contributing factor to maternal death, Dr. Dimino said it often shows up in subtle ways that may not be apparent to a healthcare provider — but make a huge impact on the patient.

From the article:

“If you asked a hospital, ‘Do you have an employee on staff who is racist?’ they would say, ‘No, we would never allow that,’” she said. “But it’s not always those obvious situations. It’s in the smaller conversations, in the notes, in the chart, and that can be just as dangerous.”

She said patients are sometimes recorded as non-compliant or leaving against medical advice. But when doctors take time to talk with them, they learn that they have to be home to meet the school bus, or can’t get transportation to a specialist’s office across town.

Dr. Dimino is very active in the Texas medical community, serving on the Texas Medical Association as their Committee on Reproductive, Women’s and Perinatal Health as well as the TMA Texas Maternal Health Congress.

Click here to read the article in the Texas Tribune.