Northwestern Medicine’s obstetrics and gynecology department will host its third annual open house on Tuesday evening to spotlight disparities in Black maternal health. The event, scheduled from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at Northwestern Prentice Women’s Hospital in Chicago's Streeterville neighborhood, aims to provide education and raise awareness for individuals who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant.

The program will include presentations, question-and-answer sessions, and guided tours of the labor and delivery units. Dr. Jacqueline Hairston, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at Northwestern, emphasized the importance of this event in light of the significant inequalities in maternal and infant health outcomes affecting Black communities.

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that Black women and infants face higher rates of fatal pregnancy complications than other racial or ethnic groups in the United States. Black women are more than three times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than their white counterparts. Similarly, infant mortality rates among Black infants are more than double those of white infants, according to the latest CDC statistics for 2024.

Personal experiences highlight these alarming trends. Daria Siler, a Black mother who gave birth to her son at Northwestern in 2024, recounted receiving dismissive care during her first pregnancy at another health system, which she believes contributed to a second-trimester miscarriage. She described being told that her pain was normal and noted a lack of follow-up after an ultrasound potentially detected a hematoma.

“I felt like it had to be these extreme things going on before I should go seek help,” Siler said, underscoring the need for earlier intervention when symptoms arise.

Stories of inadequate care among Black birthing individuals are not uncommon in the Chicago area. A widely circulated video from November showed a woman from Dolton giving birth in her car after being refused admission at an Indiana hospital during labor, igniting national conversations about racial disparities in maternal healthcare access and treatment.

Dr. Hairston noted that many of her Black patients report feeling that their symptoms are frequently dismissed by healthcare providers. She referenced tennis star Serena Williams’s near-fatal childbirth complications as an example of how even affluent and high-profile Black women can face neglect in medical settings.

The upcoming open house aims to foster awareness, reduce stigma, and promote proactive care, particularly for high-risk pregnancies. While the focus is on Black maternal health, organizers welcome people of all races and backgrounds to participate, emphasizing that improvements in Black maternal outcomes can lead to better health for all birthing individuals.