Webinar On-Demand: Community Birthing Solutions

It is “stepping in where we need to […] and giving them that unconditional auntie love and modeling for them what we want to do for their babies,” said Camie Goldhammer, of the Sisseton-Wahpeton tribe, on her role as an Indigenous doula and lactation consultant in the state of Washington. Goldhammer works with mothers before, during, and after pregnancy, “regardless of the outcome of the pregnancy and pregnancy status.” 

On February 28, 2024, the Pulitzer Center hosted a webinar panel conversation with Goldhammer; Nichole Wardlaw, a certified nurse midwife and founder of Jamii Birth in Hampton, Virginia; and Victoria Buchanan, a certified nurse midwife at Sentara Midwifery Specialists, also in Hampton. 

The conversation was moderated by Jenna Kunze, staff reporter at Native News Online and author of the Pulitzer Center-supported project Building Back a People: The Indigenous Birth Workers of Seattle.

“We don’t provide medical support,” Goldhammer said. “We really see our work as traditional work.” 

Midwives provide medical care before, during, and after pregnancy, but do not perform invasive surgeries. Doulas provide pregnant people and their families with emotional, physical, and spiritual support before, during, and after pregnancy.

“We strongly believe in informed decision-making and shared decision-making. Our visits tend to be longer, we tend to have a very holistic approach,” said Buchanan. 

While all three panelists found different paths to traditional birthing care, they found that they did not have to choose the “standard way,” according to Buchanan, like becoming an OB-GYN or clinical therapist to improve birthing care for Black, brown, and Indigenous mothers. 

They encourage clients to be a partner in their care. It “should be shared. It is your life,” said Buchanan. 

Wardlaw, who is Black, emphasized the importance of spaces where clients “don’t have to code switch, where they feel comfortable talking to me about whatever is going on in their lives so I can help them as best as I could.” 

With over 16 years of experience as a midwife, she noted that usual factors in public health, like wealth, geography, and age, don’t apply to pregnancy outcomes. 

“The problem is racism, not race,” she noted. “It’s college-educated Black women (who) die most often.”

“It doesn’t matter what your income level is; if you have access to good care you can still have good outcomes,” said Buchanan.

Buchanan encouraged pregnant people to take care in selecting their providers, researching past outcomes, and having a conversation about their ideal care.

Wardlaw said she asks her clients, “What does birth look like in your culture?” She recounted a story in which hospital staff accommodated the religious dress of a birthing mother. “Small” things can make a big difference, said Wardlaw. 

During pregnancy, many families ask, “What am I going to pass down to this next generation? And culture is one of the things people long for,” said Goldhammer.

“My most relevant experience isn’t being a Native mom, it’s being a Native child,” said Goldhammer. She said she observed systemic disinvestment from her community while growing up. 

Goldhammer said the “end game [of being a doula] is […] intergenerational healing,” healing that requires more than just birthing care.

Her organization, Hummingbird Family Services, also provides families with financial support. Healing and remuneration, however, cannot “rely on philanthropists. This is a community responsibility, and something that government should be actively involved in.” 

The panel concluded with a discussion of legislative and grassroots solutions. “Know who your legislators are,” advised Wardlaw.

Resources for reproductive health care discussed during the webinar include:

• MISS Study
• Aunties on the Road
• Center for Indigenous Midwifery
• Indigenous Doulas

This was part of the Pulitzer Center’s webinar series on global health, Health Stories With Impact. Watch previous recordings “Telling New Kinds of Global Health Stories” and “Smoking for the State,” through our webinars on-demand.