Eradicating Racism From Maternity Care Begins With Addressing Implicit Bias

Abstract

Black women have long experienced racism in various areas of their lives. Pregnancy is one of the times in a woman's life when she is most vulnerable, and she should not have to worry that her health care will be subpar simply because she is Black. Most health care providers do not intend to harm their patients; however, systemic racism and the unconscious biases we hold may cause harm. Training nurses and other health care providers about implicit bias is one step toward eradicating racism from maternity care.

Keywords: Black women; disparity; maternal mortality; perinatal; pregnancy; racism; social determinants of health; structural racism.