History and Health Symposium
“Improving Birth Outcomes: Health Disparities and Black Birthing People“
The 2024 History and Health annual symposium explored the history of reproductive healthcare and policies, the social determinants of health driving the current Black maternal health crisis, and strategies to ameliorate the health and healthcare disparities. You can view the keynote lecture below.
Objectives: At the conclusion of the symposium, attendees should have gained increased awareness of:
- The historically-rooted, systematic, and structural inequities that impact existing reproductive health and Black maternal health disparities
- Patient perspectives regarding opportunities for meaningful change that can impact health care quality and access
- Promising policies, practices and initiatives that are helping to improve birth outcomes.
Details
12:00–4:30 p.m.
October 2, 2024
Venue: Library of Virginia
This symposium is co-hosted by the Office of Health Equity and the Humanities Research Center.
Co-sponsored by Birth in Color, the School of Public Health, the Institute for Women’s Health and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Virginia Commonwealth University.
This event is free and open to all.
Agenda
11:30 - 12:00 p.m.
Registration
12:00 – 12:15 p.m.
Welcome Remarks
- Kevin Harris, PhD, MSA, Senior Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, School of Medicine
- Catherine Ingrassia, PhD, Dean, College of Humanities & Sciences
- Arturo Saavedra, MD, PhD, Dean, School of Medicine and Executive VP for
Medical Affairs, VCU Health
12:15 - 1:30 p.m.
Luncheon and Kaplowitz/Garland Lectureship in Health Equity
Moderator: Chris Cynn, PhD, Associate Professor of Gender Sexuality and Women's Studies and Director of the HRC Health Humanities Lab
Understanding Mechanisms to Advance Reproductive Justice, Birth Equity, and Health Equity
Monica McLemore, PhD, MPH, RN, Professor, Department of Child, Family, and Population Health Nursing and Director of the Manning Price Spratlen Center for Anti-Racism and Equity, University of Washington
The purpose of this talk is to provide an overview of some of the mechanisms that advance
reproductive justice, birth outcomes and health equity.
At the end of this session, participants will be able to:
- Define reproductive justice, birth equity, and health equity;
- Explain the similarities, differences, and distinctions between reproductive justice, birth
equity, and health equity; - Determine levels of engagement that are possible within their own domains of influence (and that advance collective impacts).
1:30 - 1:45 p.m.
Break
1:45 - 2:30 p.m.
Patient Perspective Panel - Practical Changes
Moderator: Susan Bodnar-Deren, PhD, Associate Professor of Sociology and Co-Director of Community Engaged Research, VCU Institute for Women’s Health
2:30 - 2:50 p.m.
Health Humanities Lab Spotlight: Black Childbearing Health
- Susan Bodnar-Deren, PhD, Associate Professor of Sociology and Co-Director of Community Engaged Research, VCU Institute for Women’s Health
- Kenda Sutton-El, Founder and Executive Director of Birth In Color
2:50 - 3:00 p.m.
Break
3:00 - 4:20 p.m.
Policy and Clinical Practice Panel Discussion
Moderator: Andrew J. Barnes, PhD, Professor of Health Behavior and Policy, VCU School of Public Health
- Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan
- Kenda Sutton-El, Founder and Executive Director of Birth In Color
- Vanessa Walker Harris, MD, Director, Office of Family Health Services, Virginia Department of Health
- Tashima Lambert Giles, MD, VCU Health OB/GYN
4:20 - 4:30 p.m.
Closing Remarks
- Sheryl Garland, MHA, FACHE, Chief of Health Impact, VCU Health System and Executive Director, VCU Office of Health Equity
- Lisa Kaplowitz, MD, MSHA
Keynote Speaker: Monica McLemore, PhD, MPH, RN
Dr. Monica McLemore is a Professor in the Department of Child, Family, and Population Health Nursing and Director of the Manning Price Spratlen Center for Anti-Racism and Equity at the University of Washington. Dr. McLemore is a preeminent scholar of antiracist birth equity research, community-informed methods, and policy translation. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from The College of New Jersey in 1993, a master’s in public health from San Francisco State University, and a PhD in oncology genomics at the University of California, San Francisco. She has worked her entire career in reproductive health, rights, and justice. After a 28-year career, she retired from active clinical practice. Her research findings have been widely cited and her writings designs and tests interventions to advance reproductive justice for all.