GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Research finds that Black women have the highest risk of pregnancy-related heart problems in the U.S. According to the American Heart Association, Black women can be up to five times more likely than White women to die from pregnancy-related complications.
Since it's Black Maternal Health Week, which runs from April 11 to April 17, I sat down with Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner from C. King Psychiatry, Syreeta Drake, to raise awareness on the topic.
“When we talk about Black maternal health, we cannot really have that conversation without also talking about mental health,” Drake said.
Drake stresses that pregnant Black women do not have to die due to the disparities within the Black maternal health world. “Why they are so susceptible to these things that are treatable is because when they go seek treatment, their presenting symptoms are not looked at or treated the way they should be,” Drake explains.
The AHA says compared to White women, pregnant Black women are 45% more likely to die in the hospital, 23% more likely to have a heart attack, 57% more likely to have a stroke, 42% more likely to develop a blood clot in the lungs, and 71% more likely to develop heart muscle weakness.
“Those numbers shouldn't persist that way," Drake said. "And the only difference is that Black women have the higher mortality rates.”
Pregnancy-related deaths among women of all colors in the U.S. have risen 140% over the last three decades, and Cardiovascular Disease is the leading cause.
“There are some medical conditions that happen, such as Preeclampsia or Eclampsia, where they are at greater risk because of the blood pressure issues associated with it,” Drake said. The AHA says Preeclampsia, which is a serious complication of pregnancy characterized by high blood pressure and kidney dysfunction, is 60% more common in Black women and is a risk factor for Cardiovascular Disease.
According to Drake, one of the main things women can do is look after their mental health before, during, and after pregnancy. “No one should be dying because of maternal complications when they can be treated and they can be prevented, whether they are medical or psychiatric,” Drake said.
Drake urges women to use the community resources available to them, which include Go Red for Women through the AHA, maternal and mental health education and advocacy through the Grand Rapids Black Nurses Association, postpartum mental health support through Pine Rest's Mother & Baby Day Program, and maternal and mental health resources and doula training through the African American Health Institute.
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