Candace Y.A. Montague

Doulas, midwives and other maternal health care workers have been lauded as life saving workers who can mitigate obstetric violence. Can doctors make room for them?

Finding solutions to the maternal and infant mortality crisis can be a confounding task. Are more mothers and babies dying because they lack insurance coverage and don’t have access to good health care providers? Are racial disparities to blame for the fact that Black mothers are dying at three or four times the rate of white mothers?
Could housing be the solution we're overlooking?

Community colleges are one of the best open secrets for physiology and other STEM majors.

Thanks to the passage of the infrastructure bill and the American Rescue Plan, the District is set to receive millions in federal funding with the goal of completely removing lead pipes from its infrastructure by 2030.
However, both the city and advocates say the available money falls far short of what is needed to address the full amount of lead pipes and lead-based paint found in properties and public space across DC.

A 2005 law states that expectant mothers with no minor children who are experiencing homelessness are not eligible for private, family shelter until their third trimester. Until then, they must stay in crowded, low barrier shelters. How does that affect the maternal mortality crisis in DC?

The media’s practice of constantly referring to that clandestine and abusive experiment as the primary reason for vaccine hesitancy among Black Americans is myopic. At best, it has turned into a lazy form of shorthand for a long and complex history. At worst, the trope writes off Black people as apathetic victims.

Is it a new day at the American Medical Association?
The influential AMA and more than 600 members of its House of Delegates have officially recognized racism as a public health threat and race as a social construct instead of a biological one.
But some activist medical students say the statement is late and empty.

In just the first three months of 2020, 19,416 people across the country died from drug overdoses, surpassing last year’s first-quarter total by almost 3,000, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Can we afford to abandon in light of a new public heath crisis?

Diversity, equity and inclusion matters in pure science. Are your schools, labs, and workplaces reflecting that?

The ugly history of clandestine experiments and abuse of Black patients casts a long shadow.

For the second year in a row, a community staple is getting financial support to expand its outreach and improve the health outcomes of women and babies. Mamatoto Village, a perinatal family support organization located in Ward 7, provides non-clinical assistance for DC expectant mothers. Recently the nonprofit received additional funding that will help it hire more helpers, boost salaries of select staff members and get educational materials.
Mamatoto Village has received a grant from March ...

The recent closures of maternity wards at United Medical Center and Providence Hospitals have left expectant mothers in a bind. The dearth of healthcare outlets in the East End is an S.O.S. of sorts. It is frightening not to have a birthing plan in place. It is even more unnerving to know that if something happens during the pregnancy you may have to rely on someone who isn’t familiar with your medical history for help.
But from the glass-half-full perspective, times like these can be a great...