Maternal Health: What’s Changed And What The Future Holds

by | Jun 27, 2024 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

Listen now to About Health (7/8/24) on KPFA.org 94.1FM

https://archives.kpfa.org/data/20240708-Mon1400.mp3

We discussed the many major issues people face related to pre-natal care, pregnancy, abortion, mental health, birth, c-sections, and postpartum complications. Racial disparities exist and Black women are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than White women. There are many factors that contribute to these disparities, such as the quality in healthcare, any underlying chronic conditions, racism, and implicit bias. We will talk about some of the social determinants of health, and what can be done to reduce infant and maternal illness and death.

Guest:

Amanda P. Williams, MD, MPH, FACOG is the Clinical Innovation Advisor with the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC) based at Stanford University School of Medicine where she also is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. In Spring 2024, Dr. Williams founded Poplar Lane Advisors LLC to create a platform to support startup companies and non profit organizations navigating the world of maternal health equity.

Dr. Williams previously served as Medical Director at Mahmee, a tech-enabled maternal health company dedicated to improving health equity and empowering families with wraparound care during the pregnancy and postpartum period. In this role she oversaw the company’s clinical programming, while fostering institutional partnerships, developing new business opportunities and supporting investor outreach.

Prior to joining Mahmee, Dr. Williams was a practicing OBGYN at Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center where she served as Director of Maternity Services. Additionally, she oversaw the maternity continuum across Kaiser’s 15 medical centers in Northern California. She has also served on several state and national committees, such as the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review, the California Surgeon General’s perinatal redesign stakeholder group, and the National Quality Forum Maternal Morbidity and Mortality work group.

Dr. Williams is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Harvard University. She completed her medical degree at Emory University School of Medicine where she also received a master’s degree in public health. She completed her graduate medical training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at The University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Williams is a prominent voice on maternal health and health equity.

 

Maternal Health Crisis

by | Nov 1, 2022 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

Globally, maternal mortality has decreased, but in the U.S. it continues to rise! Maternal health outcomes have become more disparate with black women being three times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes as white women. Most pregnancy-related deaths are preventable, so what are the causes? What work is being done to end preventable mortality and racial disparities?  

12/19/22 KPFA.org—94.1FM

Listen Now

https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=391323

Guest:

Amanda P. Williams, MD, MPH, FACOG is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist and strategic physician leader focused on eliminating health disparities and leveraging virtual care. She currently oversees clinical innovations for the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative at Stanford University. Additionally, she advises digital women’s health endeavors such as RiskLD, Nike Fitness Club- motherhood program, and nascent startups via High Alpha Innovation. She is clinically based at the Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center where until Summer 2022 she served as Director of Maternity Services. She also led the maternity continuum for the Chiefs of OBGYN across 15 medical centers and 44,000 annual births in Northern California. Dr. Williams’ research topics have included: expansion of abortion access, contraception continuation, peripartum depression, and minimally invasive hysterectomies. 

Dr. Williams is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Harvard University where she majored in American Medical History and Biochemistry. She completed her medical degree at Emory University School of Medicine where she also received a master’s degree in public health, focusing on health policy and management. She completed her graduate medical training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at The University of California, San Francisco. She has served on multiple state and national committees, including currently the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review. After hours, Dr. Williams can be found hiking in the redwoods, taking cardio-hip hop dance class, mentoring women of color in the medical pipeline, or attending her teenage boys’ endless sports activities.