US immigrant communities are experiencing worsening perinatal health outcomes and widening health disparities at the hands of certain federal policies. For our September Collaboratory, we collaborated with UCSF midwifery students to understand the impact of current immigration practices on pregnant people and families, examine federal policies that permit and restrict U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) interaction in healthcare settings and detail points of intervention.
Download the slides from the event
Resources, Organizations, Research, and Key Points from our Speakers
What is covered:
- The impact of white supremacist, racist, and xenophobic immigration policies on perinatal health outcomes of immigrants and surrounding communities.
- How current federal immigration policies allow and restrict ICE entrance to and interactions in health care settings
- Clinic and hospital policies that can be implemented to protect undocumented patients from ICE and work towards creating healthcare settings where patients can access equitable healthcare without fear of deportation or adverse impacts on their immigration status
- Concrete actions that listeners can take in policy and advocacy arenas for mitigating xenophobic oppression
Watch the full event (English version)
Watch the full event (spanish version)
Speakers
Ana Delgado
Ana Delgado, MS, RN, CNM is a Clinical Professor in the UCSF Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, San Francisco General Hospital (SFGH) Division. Ana splits her time between clinical practice and administration at SFGH. She acts as the Assistant Director of Inpatient Obstetrics, primarily responsible for quality improvement (QI) and systems change, and as Director of Inpatient Services for the Nurse-Midwives of ZSFG, a 45 year-old, autonomous midwifery service. She also manages a contract to provide prenatal care services at Mission Neighborhood Health Center, a federally qualified health center in the community that cares for primarily Spanish-speaking immigrants. Recently Ana was named Co-Director for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for the UCSF ZSFG OBGYN division, recognizing her commitment to health equity. She is passionate about diversifying the midwifery profession and centering the voices of people of color in her work. Additionally, Ana sits on several San Francisco county-wide initiatives aiming at improving perinatal care for low-income women in San Francisco, partnering with the San Francisco Department of Public Health and non-profit, community-based organizations to transform how low-income women are supported and cared for throughout the reproductive life cycle.
Karen Lopez-Acero
Karen Lopez-Acero, RN is a candidate in the class of 2020 CNM/WHNP program at the University of California, San Francisco. Prior to starting her midwifery education, she was a community organizer for worker and immigrant rights in NYC and political education trainer for social justice movements nationwide with Re-Power, training institute. As a community organizer Karen, saw a need to support families in their healing and wellness while they fight for justice. Karen dedicated her life for eight year in NYC to provide birth support, holistic reproductive care and healing community spaces for BIPOC families to reclaim traditional ancestral wisdom. Karen currently works as a Doula Mentor and consultant for Sister Web, providing community birth support for Black and Latinx families in SF. As a midwife, Karen is invested in creating an autonomous sustainable birth center to support working class BIPOC communities to birth and raise their families with dignified care.
Meagan Morse
Meagan Morse, RN is a CNM/WHNP candidate in the class of 2020 at UCSF. Prior to her studies at UCSF, she trained as a student midwife at Maternidad La Luz, a birth center on the Texas-Mexico border. There she primarily served Spanish-speaking immigrant families, witnessing both the violence of the xenophobic immigration policy and practices, and the resilience and resourcefulness of families. She is also a student representative to the American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) Gender Equity Taskforce and the Transgender Care Workgroup
Maria Guadalupe Nunez
Maria Guadalupe Nuñez Torres is a 23-year resident of San Francisco, a mother of two boys, and a parent leader in the San Francisco Unified School District. She started her leadership journey as part of a CenteringPregnancy group at Mission Neighborhood Health Center and is now a civic engagement “promotora” at the Mission Economic Development Agency. She loves always learning new ways to help her community. Her favorite pastimes are going to the park with her sons, sports, and spending time with her family.
Mi nombre es María, me encanta siempre estar aprendiendo cosas nuevas para compartir con mi comunidad. Y mi mejor pasatiempo es salir al parque con mis hijos, los deportes y mi familia.
Caranina Palomino
Caranina Palomino, RN is a CNM/WHNP candidate, currently nearing the end of her training. Prior to entering midwifery, she studied Maternal and Child Health at Tulane University School of Public Health. She has worked as a childbirth educator, facilitated postpartum community support groups, and serves in the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative for UCSF. Caranina’s passion for a just and equitable future in healthcare is partially informed by her Mexican identity and the resilience she has watched in her own beautiful family throughout her life.
