Bumps and bundles - exploring health disparities and inequity in maternal health for women of colour

Feeling anxious or worried about your health concerns being ignored by your doctor? Curious about data suggesting that certain populations may experience worse outcomes in a maternal health setting and what can be done about it? This webinar will explore root causes of disparities in maternal health outcomes and provide pragmatic tools and strategies from the perspective of doctors working in the field on what can be done. 

Women of colour are more likely to experience complications in the maternal health setting or even die during pregnancy or childbirth. These numbers are two to three times higher for black, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. What are the factors that might be contributing to this and what can be done about it? How can you as a patient make yourself heard if you feel as if your symptoms are being dismissed? Join our panel discussion to explore the current state of maternal health for women of color and actions to help drive change. 

What you will learn:

• The problems that currently exist in Australia and abroad and what the data is telling us about populations that are disproportionately impacted. 
• How might changes to policy, training, funding, or even improved diversity reduce some of these disparities? 
• Actions that are currently being taken and resulting in improved outcomes.
• As a patient, how to make yourself heard if you feel like your symptoms are being dismissed.
• Resources available for patient advocacy.

Registration required so we can share with you a video link to the session. 

Questions for our panelists can be submitted in advance here.

Hosted by Caia

Caia is Australia's first on demand care clinic focused on the reproductive health & wellness needs of women and families. Caia connects you with empathetic experts in women's health to support you as you navigate life stages. You can follow Caia on Instagram at @askcaia.

About the moderator:

Winitha Bonney 

Winitha Bonney is Australia's first and foremost Thought Leader in the advancement of People of Colour and in building anti-fragile cultures of allyship. 

She has over 21 years of experience in executive roles, has founded several businesses and is a person with multiple 'lived experiences'. This has provided Winitha with an incredible amount of unique insights, experiences and expertise to help people of colour become leaders and successful entrepreneurs. And to support leaders and businesses to create inclusive, connected and engaged organisations and communities through an anti-fragile culture of allyship. Find out more about how Winitha can support you and your organisation here. 

About our panelists:

Cortina McCurry 

Dr. Cortina McCurry is the CEO and co-founder of Caia. Prior to launching Caia, she was a partner at BCG where she advised multinationals, startups, and not for profits across North America, the United Kingdom, Africa, and Australia. She has spent her career across healthcare and operations, working with organisations such as Save The Children International where she spent 2014 transforming global operations and supporting the humanitarian response to the Ebola virus outbreak. Cortina holds a PhD in systems neuroscience from MIT. 

Dr. Kudzai Kanhutu 

Dr Kudzai  Kanhutu ( FRACP, MBBS(Hons), BA/Bsc, MPH, MAICD) is an infectious diseases physician and deputy chief medical information officer at the Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH). She is a current Superstar of STEM and recipient of the Victorian Department Of Health excellence in culturally and linguistically diverse care award. Her current work portfolio includes patient care, research and project management with a particular focus on the role that digital technologies can play in addressing health inequity.  

Dr. Carmen Brown

Carmen is a board certified Obstetrician/Gynaecologist who has over 15 years experience in her speciality. She is originally from Atlanta, Georgia and obtained her Bachelors of Science in Cellular and Molecular Biology at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. She graduated from medical school at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia which is one of four Historically Black Medical Schools in the United States. She went on to finish her speciality training in Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Houston, Texas at the Texas Medical Center, the largest Medical Center in the world. She has worked in private practice and has been a Senior Clinical Lecturer at training programs in the USA and New Zealand. She has a passion for improving access and equality in maternal health care and has been a part of several online platforms dedicated to bringing health care inequity due to structural racism to light. She is a member of Mocha OB, a group of over 500 female OB/GYN and GP OBS of colour who are making a point to educate and empower Black women with their health care. She does interviews and lectures on a variety of topics and was most recently featured on the NBC News Web Series “Global Hangouts” discussing the impact of the Stage 4 restrictions in Victoria. She is a blogger and writer and spends time writing about life as a doctor and mom to a child with autism. She has been married to her school sweetheart for over 20 years and is mom to 2. 

You can follow her at @AutismDrMom on Twitter or at “Confessions of a Doctor Mom” at: www.AutismDrMom@blogspot.com

Dr. Stephanie Trust 

Dr Stephanie, Principal GP, is a Kidja woman and was born and raised in the East Kimberley. She initially trained as an Enrolled Nurse before converting this to an Aboriginal Health Worker (AHW) qualification and working in the Kimberley and Pilbara regions for around 12 years. In 2000, Dr Trust travelled to Perth to fulfil her lifelong dream of becoming a Doctor.

Dr Stephanie, is a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and, until recently, was the Medical Director at the Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services Council in Broome. She is a Board member of the Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association, the Kimberley-Pilbara Medicare Local, and the Kimberley Stolen Generation Aboriginal Corporation. Dr Stephanie is also a Cultural Mentor and Advisor for Western Australian General Practice Education & Training Ltd