Welcome to Racial Disparities, Diversity and Inclusion

This video provides an overview of the bundle as well as contact hour information. 

Strengthening Cultural Humility Dismantling Implicit Bias for Birth Professionals

Dr. Sayida Peprah, PsyD, Licensed Clinical Psychologist

Studies have identified implicit bias and lack of culturally appropriate care as a contributor to maternal health disparities among marginalized and minority communities. Mitigating implicit bias among providers has been identified as a strategy to improve client/patient-provider communication and service/treatment decisions, contributing to improved quality of care and outcomes. Participants will have the opportunity to broaden their awareness of their personal cultural script and implicit biases (subtle, unconscious assumptions about others). Participants will also be equipped with tools to engage with pregnant, birthing and postpartum clients with increased cultural sensitivity and humility.

Contact Hours:
One (1) ICEA Contact Hour; One (1) R-CERP

Supporting LGBQ/T Families: Understanding Identity in the Perinatal Period

Rachel Hess, MS

During this talk Rachel will explore barriers to care that LGBQ/T families face and ways participants can provide anti-oppressive care. We will discuss implicit biases as well as the layers of oppression that families encounter when accessing services. Participants will be challenged to think about the ways in which they present their services, structure their spaces, promote themselves and how to move beyond a rainbow sticker and work towards cultural humility.

After this session the learner will be able to: 
1. Identify their implicit biases
2. Learn about LGBQ/T terms and identities
3. Examine structural oppression and power and how it impacts marginalized families 

Contact Hours:
One (1) ICEA Contact Hour; One (1) R-CERP

Instinct, Autonomy, and Assumption - Considerations for Queer Competent CBE

Jenna  Brown, Love Over Fear Wellness and Birth, LLC

So often in childbirth education courses, participants are encouraged to trust their instinct. They are told to trust their bodies and their babies. There is an emphasis on leaning into "maternal intuition." These narratives neglect to account for the experiences of many queer pregnant and birthing people who experience some level ongoing dysphoria related to their body and/or identities. And yet - at the same time - for many people, at the heart of queer identity is a deeply integrated understanding of self-determination and bodily autonomy. This session will identify and explore some of the nuanced considerations for teaching childbirth education to queer and trans pregnant people, and challenge some of the most common assumptions made about the needs of LGBT+ pregnant people.

After attending this session, participants will be able to: understand the terms "self-determination" and "bodily autonomy" and how they are related to queer experience; understand both gender and body dysphorias, and how they may impact pregnant people of all gender and sexual identities; recognize where some of the philosophies that inform their work as childbirth educators may be at odds with the experiences of queer individuals; utilize suggestions to adapt their practices and/or expand their referral networks to better meet the needs of students for whom they may not be the best fit. 

Contact Hours:
One (1) ICEA Contact Hour; One (1) R-CERP

Transforming Cultural Competency to Cultural Humility

Felisha Floyd, BS, CLC, IBCLC

Come on, we’ve all attended a mandatory cultural competence training and afterwards got a certificate of completion that we wore as a certified badge of honor.  If you haven’t noticed by now, this approach is not effective nor is it practical.  When we think of what it takes to really center cultural sensitivity, we much have an approach with a lifelong lens of understating and practicing cultural humility.  Recognizing, and affirming the importance of cultural humility in society is essential.  In fact, many folks refer to this journey to understanding race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality as a marathon.  However, there is an often discomfort or even an internal struggle to address cultural issues in practice.  At times this barrier is often unintentionally rooted in bias, unfamiliarly, fear of giving offense, or because cultural differences or similarities can make it challenging to serve families objectively. In this discussion we will explore practical strategies that build power into one’s ability to recognize, acknowledge, and engage with the womb carrying folks across cultures.  We will also examine how to acknowledge limitations and view them as opportunities for deeper reflection and growth. 

After this session the learner will be able to:
1. Name two ways to demonstrate empathy
2. Explain why cultural humility is important. 
3. Describe what influences and impacts one's culture.

Contact Hour:
One (1) ICEA Contact Hour; One (1) R-CERP