Date of Conferral

12-11-2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Human Services

Advisor

Kecia Freeman

Abstract

African American women are more likely than Hispanic and non-Hispanic White women to die during or after childbirth from complications. Incidences of African American maternal death are especially prevalent in the urban living population. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the healthcare inequalities that urban-living African American women have experienced during or after pregnancy. Link and Phelan’s fundamental cause theory, which states that there may be a relationship between socioeconomic status and mortality, served as the theoretical foundation for the investigation. A generic qualitative research design was used. Ten participants were interviewed and surveyed to gain insight into African American women’s perspectives on healthcare services and their interactions with healthcare professionals. The collected data were analyzed following Braun and Clark’s five-step thematic approach. The results highlight the participants’ beliefs that there is a differentiation in health care services, a widespread view that African American women are strong and pain tolerant, and varying health care services based on environment and medical insurance. The participants also expressed that patient advocacy is important during and after childbirth. This study could contribute to positive social change through its recommendation that human services practitioners be agents of advocacy for their African American clients. The highlight of this study could effectively shift attention toward the cultural and political conditions that contribute to health care professionals’ implicit bias towards this group of individuals and offer awareness of the driving factors of the social determinants of health.

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