The OVA includes women and birthing people, governmental agencies, health-care system professionals, insurance providers, maternal support organizations, policy advocates, social determinants of health professionals, and support networks.
The OVA is already working on system-level changes that will help increase birth justice and save lives. We have begun citywide implementation of Heart Safe Motherhood, a text-based postpartum blood-pressure monitoring program aimed at reducing complications of high blood pressure related to pregnancy. We have also disseminated implicit bias training at all Philadelphia birthing hospitals and increased access to doula services for prenatal, labor, and postpartum support.
We stand at a unique point in time — a time of increased attention, support, and funding, and we are poised to seize the moment to make meaningful change. We invite everyone to work together to build bridges toward birth justice. Aasta Mehta is the medical officer of women’s health for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health and vice chair of the Philadelphia Commission for Women. She oversees the Philadelphia Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Program, including the Maternal Mortality Review Committee and The OVA.
Death is racist
We have the highest c-section rate in the developed world. Start there.