Series: What the ICE surge taught us about maternity care (How fear changed behavior)
Building trust has to be a core part of maternity care | 3 min read
No mom should have to choose between safety and care.
“When basic needs are taken away, when families are separated, when a sense of security is ruptured. The result is suffering and fear.”
☝️This, from Minnesota Public Radio's Angela Davis, perfectly sums up Minnesota during the ICE surge.
I talked to leaders across Minnesota's health maternal health ecosystem, and this came up repeatedly when they shared real stories about their patients, particularly immigrant moms and those of color:
- A mom stepped onto a mobile clinic van smiling and said: “I haven’t been outside since my baby was born.”
- After giving birth, a mother called her baby’s father, who had been detained. He apologized to his baby over and over for missing the birth.
- A pregnant Venezuelan immigrant skipped 2 months of OB visits. She ultimately delivered a healthy baby, but fear and re-traumatization from violence in her home country made her afraid to leave home postpartum.
- A high-risk patient missed a critical ultrasound due to ICE activity near her apartment and she planned to go in the next day. She went into labor that night and later lost her baby.
In every story, fear became a healthcare barrier.
What the ICE surge taught me is that trust may be one of the most overlooked maternal health interventions we have.
As Munira Maalimisaq, CEO of Inspire Change Clinic shared: “We saw fear outweigh medical urgency.”
Building and keeping trust with immigrant and marginalized communities has to be a core part of maternity care – not just during a crisis.
The ICE surge showed me that access to health care isn’t enough. Patients have to feel safe to access it.
Because no mom should have to choose between safety and care.
📣 Learn more here:
- Read my latest blog for Postpartum Support International: When Fear Changes How New Moms Feel and Seek Care here
- Listen to Minnesota Public Radio's podcast episode Immigration and the Challenge to Belong here
Follow the conversation on LinkedIn.
Read the full blog on Postpartum Support International here.
Learn more about what I’m fighting for.
