Gnae Dismuke experienced a miscarriage at 11 weeks in 2017 and later gave birth to three children, now ages six, four, and one month.
Dismuke says she’s encouraged that programs exist to advocate for safer birth outcomes for Black women like her. However, when it comes to actual practices of medical facilities and doctors, she has a conflicted perspective – a point of view shaped by her three birth experiences: one in a hospital, one at home, and another in a hospital.
Dismuke, who lives in Los Angeles, addressed her birthing challenges with the help of Black Infant Health in partnership with the Long Beach Public Health and Human Services Department. They supplied doulas and nurses who visited her home during her last birth and advocated on her behalf…