Health
Viral Videos of Women in Labor Being Denied Care Renews Conversation Around Black Maternal Health Care
A Chicago mother spent hours at a hospital until her contractions were a minute apart. She was then discharged and gave birth in a car just eight minutes later.
Days earlier, a video of a woman in Texas went viral showing her in visible pain as a hospital employee puts her through numerous questions before she was finally given a delivery room. She gave birth roughly 12 minutes later.
These two recent cases are bringing renewed attention to the treatment of Black pregnant women and igniting conversations around medical racism.
In 2024, women in the U.S. are far more likely to die of a pregnancy-related cause than in other developed nations, according to information provided by Rush University Medical Center. Black women in Chicago are four times more likely to experience a pregnancy-related death than White women.
Two Stories, Similar Treatment
Mercedes Wells of Chicago spent nearly six hours at Franciscan Health Crown Point, where her contractions began coming one minute apart, before she was told she was being discharged.
Wells was on her way to another hospital in Munster, Indiana, when roughly eight minutes later her husband Leon delivered their baby on the side of the road.
Wells says the baby girl is doing well now. In a press conference this week in front of the hospital where she was denied care, Wells said she hopes to speak with hospital officials to ensure something similar never happens again.
“I just don’t understand how, as a licensed health care worker, you could turn someone to the door to leave that’s in excruciating pain,” Wells said. “I was stripped of my dignity as a person because I was treated less than an animal.”
Her attorney questioned how Wells was turned away on supposed doctor’s orders, despite her never having been being seen by a doctor.
Raymond Grady, president and CEO of Franciscan Health Crown Point, released a statement calling the video and the comments it generated “deeply troubling” and adding that the hospital is conducting a “thorough investigation into this alleged incident.”
“While patient privacy laws make it difficult for us to comment more deeply, it is important to note that the videos and the narrative surrounding them do not accurately represent Franciscan Health Crown Point’s Catholic healthcare ministry’s values, which include respect for life, compassionate concern and Christian stewardship. Our goal is to make everyone who walks through our doors feel the love of Christ through our actions,” the statement reads. “The reality is disparities in healthcare outcomes exist and Franciscan Health Crown Point strives to be part of the solution, not the problem. We remain committed to meeting and exceeding all regulations and best practices for care, and we will take appropriate action based on the findings of our review.”
In Texas, Karrie Jones was captured on a now viral video in visible pain answering numerous questions before getting a delivery room.
She waited 30 minutes before being moved to a hospital bed where she then gave birth roughly 12 minutes later.
Disparities in Black Maternal Health
Karie Stewart, a certified nurse midwife and founder of Melanated Midwives, said she finds herself questioning any medical professional’s ability to do their job if they can’t respond to visible pain.
“We don’t know who’s going to come in our doors, but we took an oath to take care of any and everybody who comes in and is inquiring about some type of assessment for whatever they’re feeling,” Stewart said. “And if you have to pause and say, ‘yeah, I’m going to treat this person different’ because of whatever you experienced, or just because that’s the way you feel that day, you don’t need to be in this area of work.”
Chez Smith, founder of Gyrls in the H.O.O.D., an organization that provides reproductive resources and support, found herself fired up from the videos, opting to watch them in smaller bits because the whole thing was too triggering for her.
As disgusted as she may have been, she didn’t find it surprising.
Through her foundation, Smith helps connect young girls and women to appointments for their pregnancies, which can sometimes be difficult due to stigmas.
“We get girls who will call us crying because the registration clerk are making comments when they’re coming in to check in for the appointment,” Smith said. “They’re already faced with this before they even get to the provider.”
Blair Imani is currently pregnant and expecting to deliver within the month.
The author, social commentator and creator of the TikTok series, “Smarter in Seconds,” saw the two videos after multiple people shared them with her.
“Here I am preparing for my own birth and I’m witnessing these really, you know, devastating birth experiences,” Imani said. “So, it’s tough, it kind of is a perfect example of what you don’t want to happen.”
Imani previously worked for Planned Parenthood focusing on health communication in Texas, where she provided accessible information and education around dense and difficult material.
Imani shared that for Indigenous women, they are two times more likely to die of pregnancy related causes than White women, and that Black women were nearly three to four times more likely.
She emphasized that these numbers can’t be written off as just being caused by preexisting conditions or other complications, that in her view they are strictly because of “racial bias, medical racism and interpersonal bias.”
Those three things she believes were on “full display” with the videos of Jones and Wells.
Bridging the Gap in Care
While the threat of maternal mortality and other complications can be daunting, Imani believes newly expecting parents have options to prepare themselves.
Personally, Imani and her husband recently created a will for herself in the event that she experiences a fatal complication. She also recommends staying updated on new technology and learning about options for midwives and doulas.
Stewart also mentions that having a midwife who is culturally familiar with patients is critical for bridging the medical racism experienced by so many Black women.
“What individuals don’t understand, it’s very hard to advocate for yourself when you’re experiencing pain… so you either go ahead and address the individual and their pain and assess them appropriately, or you make sure you have someone else who can do it,” Stewart said.
Smith is using her organization as another way to bridge the health care gap for young Black girls and women.
“We are trying to get … Black girls more comfortable,” Smith said. “Because, right now, there’s distrust between our community and the health care system, and rightfully so. But at the end of the day, it’s like we need the care.”
