In 2024, Black maternal mortality rates continue to expose a troubling and persistent healthcare disparity in the United States. Despite decades of research, advocacy, and awareness efforts, Black women remain significantly more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than their white counterparts. In turn, the infant mortality rate for Black babies is on par with that of their mothers. Dads to Doulas wants to change those statistics by arming Black men with birthing education.
Founded by Brad Edwards, according to their website, Dads to Doulas, “aims to equip black men and expectant fathers with the knowledge and skills to advocate for their families from pregnancy through infancy. By providing doula-level education, we strive to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates.”
The program, is a part of the “Dear Fathers” network. The description continues, stating how proud the organization is to have Dads to Doulas as an important part of their universe.
“Dear Fathers” recognizes the profound impact this can have on our community and strives to empower our families from the very start. Our one of a kind doula program is specifically designated to assist, encourage, support, de-stress, maintain, and educate black men and fathers in Maternal and Paternal care.”
Thirty-Eight-year-old Edwards was inspired to start Dads to Doula as a result of his on tragic loss. Poised to become a father to twin boys in 2017, Edwards and his partner lost their children. Both boys were delivered stillborn.
“I held any of the emotions I had from my experience for years, and it took one day, sitting in my basement with my friends watching football, to start having a conversation about it,” Edwards said in a previous interview with STLMag.
“I started sobbing, and I couldn’t control my emotions. I just held everything in. I wanted to be there for my family, her family, her. I just never had the opportunity to talk and share what I was feeling and the guilt I felt from the not knowing—how I felt like I failed her and those two boys because I should have known better.”
Dads to Doulas is a free-six week program and has been extremely successful in helping to educate Black men about pregnancy and maternal healthcare. Edwards says that this program is near and dear to his heart and has not only helped other men with their journeys, it has helped him through his pain as well.
“Through my experience losing my twins, I realized that there was a lot I didn’t know, and there was a lot that I didn’t take the time to educate myself on.”
Edwards continued, “So by the time another opportunity came, when I was preparing to have my baby girl, I had become familiar with what a doula is. One of my good friends is a doula. I said, ‘Alright, I need you to help me create a playbook. What do I need to look for? What should her levels be? What should I be looking for with the placenta?’ So it was just a few different things I wanted to be educated on to make sure that I could be not only knowledgeable but also an advocate for her, because I know that Black women die at much higher rates (Black women die during childbirth three times more often) than any other race.”
This crisis reflects deeper systemic issues, including racial biases in healthcare, limited access to quality prenatal care, and social determinants of health. We unquestionably need more programs out there for the Black community so that we can see a down trend in these heartbreaking statistics.
For more information on Dads to Doulas, click here.
Photo: Pexels.com; Ben Crump Instagram