‘It’s about bringing awareness’: Brookdale Hospital hosts panel on Black maternal health

A panel of health care providers from One Brooklyn Health and Brookdale Hospital discussed the disparities when it comes to Black maternal health during a May 1 panel. Photo by Gabriele Holtermann Sign up for our Brooklyn Paper email newsletter to get news, updates, and local insights delivered straight to your inbox! One Brooklyn Health organized a panel at Brookdale Hospital in Brownsville on May 1 to discuss disparities in Black maternal health care. Panelists included Dr. Cyrus McCalla, chair of obstetrics and women’s health and a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at Brookdale; family resource specialist Joann Suggs; lactation consultant Ashley Orenshteyn; OB-GYN Dr. Cadesa Ramarrack; midwife Jaime Celestin-Edwards; and Sharon Martin, nurse manager of the mother-baby labor and delivery floor. Participants not only discussed the challenges that Black women face when it comes to maternal health care, but also offered advice and resources to empower and educate pregnant women of color. One Brooklyn Health has introduced several programs to address maternal health disparities, such as Centering Pregnancy, which pairs eight to 12 moms with similar due dates, creating a “buddy system” for support, and Healthy Families, which offers home-based services to support expectant families and new parents. Another program, HealthySteps,...