2025 YEAR IN REVIEW, OUR FIRST THREE YEARS:
BUILDINGWHATDIDN’T EXISTBEFORE
FIVEDRIVERSOFBRANDIMPACT
NationalThought Leadership
TheCenteriswidely recognizedas aleading voiceinBlack maternal health,influencingnational discoursethroughmedia featuresinoutletslike Forbes, Axios, andCBS.
PolicyInfluenceand SystemsChange
TheCenter playeda pivotalroleinshapingthe MassachusettsMomnibus bill,oneof themost comprehensivematernal healthlawsintheU.S., helpingsetablueprint for equitablematernalcare nationwide.
CommunityEngagement andConveningPower
Asthehost of thelargest Black maternalhealth conference inthecountry, theCenter bringstogether researchers,practitioners, policymakers,and families tofoster collaborationand drivecollectiveaction.
VisibilityThroughAwards andPlatforms
Recognitionthrough coveted awardsand innovations tospeakat prominent national and globaleventsreinforces theCenter’scredibility, visibility,andinfluence.
With over19,000followers andnearlyhalfamillion impressionsacross social media,theCenter isbuilding adynamic onlinecommunityof professionals,advocates, andchangemakers committedtoreproductive justice. 01 02 03 04 05
GrowingDigitalPresence andProfessionalNetwork
TUFTSRECOGNIZEDASA BLUEPRINTFORMATERNAL HEALTH
470,000 19,300 35 currentMother Lab members
socialmedia impressions followers across channels
43
Tuftsstudents trained, mentored, andgraduated
135+
Media & Speaking Engagements from 2022-2025
53 AcademicJournal Articles + Book ChaptersPublished
Global andnationalthought leadership
CREATINGIMPACTACROSS8MATERNALHEALTHGAPS
POLICY
Postpartum Medicaid coverage varies by state, causinginconsistent care and accountabilityfor maternalhealth nationwide.
DISPARITIES
Black women face higher maternalmortalityand morbidity.
WORKFORCE
A shortage ofmaternalhealth professionals,obstetricians, midwives, and doulas, significantly impacts accessto qualitycare.
RESEARCH&DATA
Insufficientand inconsistent research and data hinder efforts to address maternal health challenges
MATERNALMENTALHEALTH
Limitedmaternalmental health care and substance use policies deter treatment and increase postpartum health risks.
REPRODUCTIVERIGHTS
Reproductive rightshave decreased in recent years,increasing risks of vulnerable populations in key states.
INFRASTRUCTURE
Under-resourced community models lack support and resources.
CROSSSECTORCOLLABORATION
Siloed maternalhealth programs and efforts miss opportunities for coordinated,comprehensive support.
FillingGapsin State&FederalPolicy
Implementation
• Ledefforts topassMassachusetts Momnibus Bill H.4999 increasedbirthingrights andpost-partumcareforover 3Millionwomen,impacting 65,000births/year.It laid thegroundworkforotherstatestopasssimilar legislation.
• Delivered informational testimony in 2025 before the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Public Health, chaired by Representative Marjorie Decker, calling for actiontoadvancematernalhealthequity.
• Instrumental in H.4818, “AnActtoReduceRacial Inequities in MaternalHealth” establisheda 27-member commission toaddress racialdisparitiesin maternal health,targetingsystemic barriers andimproving outcomes for1Millionwomenofcolorin Massachusetts.
• Contributedtofederallegislation= TheGreen NewDeal forHealth potentially impacting 169MillionAmerican womenreflectsa criticaleffort toaddress broadpolicy implementation gapsaffecting vulnerablepopulations.
Dr. Amutah Onukagha wasappointed to the federal Advisory Committeeon Infant and Maternal Mortality(ACIMM), administeredby theHealth ResourcesandServices Administration.
02
FillingGapsin
RacialDisparities
• Reached 10,000people attheNationalNAACP Annual Convention viathoughtleadershipandpresentationon leadershipdevelopmentaddressingdeathanddisability of Blackwomenin theUnited States.
• Four yearsof continuouskeynotetalksandpresentations reaching50,000publichealthprofessionalsthrough theAmericanPublic Health Association(APHA).
• Dr. Amutah-Onukagha served asa keynote speaker attheAspenIdeasFestival in July2023, a premier gathering focusedon globalhealthinnovation,policy, andequity.
• Dr.LindaHudson,Sc.D.,served asmoderatorforthe “RedesigningMaternalHealth:Integrating Doulas intoCareTeams” webinar in March2025,hosted byMaternal Health Leads. In thissession,state-level leadersspotlightedinnovative strategiesforembedding doulas intocareteamsandsharedbestpractices for enhancing accessandimprovingoutcomes across maternalhealthservices.
One oftheCenter’s PostdoctoralResearch Fellows,Dr.HeatherOlden, presentingher research on doula accessandsupport at Boston areahospitals inlight ofMedicaidexpansionat the American Public Health Associationconference inMinneapolis, MNinNovember 2024.
FillingGapsin
WorkforceShortages
Maternal Outcomes for Translational Health Equity and Research(MOTHER) Lab trained and graduated over 70 students,expandingimpact in maternalhealthequity.
Noteworthystrides in research andthoughtleadership:
• Published 19 articles in peer reviewed journals such as: Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice, the MaternalandChildHealth Journal,andmore
• Contributedto4bookchaptersand15journalreviews
• Presentedat7conferences includingtheAmericanPublic Health AssociationAnnualMeeting
• Moving theneedle andadvancing worforce issues withdiscussion,presentation, andtalkson: maternal mortality,maternalstress,reproductivehealth,andthe impactoftheCOVID-19pandemiconBlackmothers
FillingGapsin 04
Research,Data andMeasurement
2022-2025ContinuousCenter
LevelImpactacrossallunits
• Published over22articles in peerreviewedscientific journals
• Contributedto7bookchapters
• Delivered11presentationsincludingposters, oral talks,androundtables acrossmultipleacademic and professionalvenues
• Participatedin8nationaland international conferences overa3-year span
• Engagedover40,000people through conference activities and presentations
• Reached12,000people withloopedshort filmon display atAPHA Conference
FillingGapsin 05
MentalHealth&
SubstanceUse
• Published
TheImpact of PsychosocialStresson MaternalHealth Outcomes:A Multi-StatePRAMS8 (2016-2018) Analysis“ in theJournalofHealthDisparitiesResearchand Practice – Aug. 2022
• Published The Roleof Health Systemsin BlackMaternalMental Health CareDelivery in CurrentTreatmentOptionsin Psychiatry,Oct. 2023
• Published Investigating theRoleof RaceandStressful Life Events on theSmokingPatterns of Pregnant andPostpartum Women in the U.S.: A Multistate PRAMSPhase8 (2016-2018) Analysis“ in theMCHJournal.- Dec. 2023
06
FillingGapsin
MentalHealth&
SubstanceUse
•
• State Level Impact: WrittentestimonyforMichigan state reproductiverights protectionfor5Millionwomenin response totheDobbs decision.
• StateLevel Impact:Membersof thecenterserved as leading advocates fortheMassachusettsEndometriosisTaskForce, championingresearch, awareness, andequitablecarefor thoseaffectedbythecondition.
• Dr. Amutah-Onukagha is a member of theMassachusetts MaternalMortalityReviewCommittee(MMRC), contributing herexpertise toanalyze maternaldeaths anddevelop strategiestoimprovematernalhealthoutcomes statewide.
• Published apeer-reviewedarticlein FrontiersinPublicHealth Journalexamininghow restrictivereproductiverights laws elevate maternalmortalityrates whiledisproportionately impactingunderservedcommunities.
Presentations with a reach of 50,000 people at the APHA Annual Meeting, including Abortion Laws in New England and The Failure of Current Contraceptive Care Measures, critically examined regional legal landscapes and structural barriers in reproductive healthcare.
FillingGapsin 07
UnderfundedPublic HealthInfrastructure
MOTHER Labstudentstabling foraSomerBaby-Centerevent.
SOMERBABY-TUFTS PARTNERSHIP:
Bilingualandculturallycongruentresourcesto34,000 familiesin Somerville,MAvia the SomerBaby-Center partnershipin Somerville,MA.
POSTPARTUMCOMMUNITY-LEVEL SUPPORT:
TheCentercreatedanddistributed NurtureKits tohigh needparentsof newborns,offeringessentialitemslike diapers,hygieneproducts,andeducationalmaterialsto supportfamilies duringthecriticalpostpartumperiod.
Nurturekits for postpartum support
08
FillingGapsin
CrossSectorCollaboration
Establishmentofa robustCommunityAdvisory Board - The CommunityEngagementandResearchUnit developedaCAB composedof diverse stakeholders, includingcommunitymembers,healthcare providers, researchers,andmaternalhealthadvocates
Presented3filmscreenings: BlackMotherhood ThroughThe Lens,LaboringwithHope,andAftershockreaching1500people
Led6 events over 4 years witha reachof 9000people
COMMUNITYENGAGEDRESEARCH
BlackBirthEquityStudy
• Conductedin-depth interviewsandfocus groupswithBlackwomen ofreproductiveage,their partnersorbirthsupporters, doulas,andmaternity care cliniciansto explore stakeholderperspectives, knowledge,attitudes,and beliefsonBlackmaternal healthdisparitiesinboththe U.S.andMassachusetts.
• Engageda Community AdvisoryBoardtoguide recruitment,datacollection, anddissemination.
DoulaEnrollmentToolkitStudy
• InDecember2023, MassHealth, Massachusetts’ Medicaid provider, initiatedaprogram coveringdoula servicesforMedicaidsubscribers,thus requiringdoulas in Massachusetts to enroll inMassHealthasdoulaproviders.
• Weconductedinterviewswithdoulas whohadalreadyenrolled,wereinthe processofenrolling,orconsidering enrollingtodetermineenrollment challenges.
• Weconvened aCommunityAdvisory Board (CAB)to usedatafrom the interviews to guidetoolkitcontent anddesign.
• FivePDFtoolkitsweredevelopedandpilot tested.
• Wearecurrently workingwithElm, an instructionaldesignfirm,tomakethe toolkits moreinteractiveandengaging.
CENTRALMISSIONPROGRAMS
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
POLICY/ ADVOCACY
MotherLab
Advocacy Partnerships
Tech Solutions forDoulas
Policy Briefs
RESEARCH& DATA
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Be a Mom Study (R01)
Community Partnerships
Grant Writing
Community Thought Leadership
INTHENEWS &MEDIA
Thought leadership with a reach of over 17millionreaders published in mainstream media such as The New YorkTimes, USA Today, Forbes, The Boston Globe, The WashingtonPost, and Bloomberg Publications resulted inbroadernationalrecognition of maternalhealth inequitiesa critical public health issue.
ADVOCATESPONSOR
ADVOCATESPONSOR
THELARGESTBLACKMATERNAL HEALTHCONFERENCE
INTHEU.S.
EnrollmentattheBlackMaternal Health Conferencegrewtoover 3,000peoplein46statesand10countriesincludingBelize, Canada,Ethiopia,TheNetherlands,Nigeria,Rwanda,SouthAfrica, Uganda,TheUnitedKingdom,andTheUnitedStates.
RecentConferenceThemes:
2025
TheRoleof Fathersin AddressingMaternalHealth Inequities
2024
Centeringtherole of technology in addressingblackmaternal healthdisparities.
2023
CenteringtheRoleof Nurses andMidwives in Addressingthe BlackMaternalHealth Crisis
2022
TheRoleof Policyin AddressingBlackMaternal Health Disparities
AWARDS
2020
National Minority Quality
Forum: Top 40 under 40 Leadersin Healthcare
2022
JohnC. MacQueenLecture Award, Associationof MaternalandChildHealth Programs
2023
FDR Humanitarianof theYear Award, Marchof DimesMA
2024
AcademicExcellencein BlackMaternalHealth, Irth Crown Award
2025 EXTRAordinaryWomen (ExW),TheMayor’s Office of Women’sAdvancement, Boston,MA
2025
HeroesAmongUs, Celtics Community, Boston,MA
PARTNERSHIPS
WHEREWELEDTHE CONVERSATION
AUGUST2025
Dr. Amutah-Onukagha was honored as one of the Top 10 Minority Healthcare Innovators for Fierce Healthcare (Award + Article)
OCTOBER2025
SpeakeratHLTH (Oneof thepremier andlargesthealthcareinnovation gatheringsglobally)
NOVEMBER2025
KeynoteattheWomen’s Health InnovationSummit(LargestWomen’s HealthConferenceglobally)
2025RESEARCHEXCELLENCE&RECOGNITION
DR.SHIKHARSHRESTHA
2025RESEARCHEXCELLENCE&RECOGNITION
DR.FARIDAYADA
PublishedaScopingreview(withMotherLab) onFoodinsecurityandPerinataloutcomes:
YADAF.N.,KianiM.,AliI.,AjayiK. DhauraliS.,SnapeL,OurdylN.,GravesandeT. Palle M.,Amutah-OnukaghaN.Examiningtheinfluenceoffoodinsecurityonperinatal healthoutcomesamongBlackbirthingindividualsintheUS:Asystematicscoping review.(2025)JournalofRacialandEthnicHealthDisparities https://doiorg/101007/s40615-025-02364-2
PublishedaBookChapter(withMotherLab)inthebook: NavigatingBlackMaternalMentalHealthandWell-Being:
ShararaL. GravesandeT,DugatV. YADAF.N.,Amutah-OnukaghaN.(2026)
Chapter7-AddressingMaternalMentalHealthTraumainBlackandBrown Communities:ACulturallyCompetentandBioethicalApproach InR Kassimu&E. Wachira(Eds.) NavigatingBlackMaternalMentalHealthandWell-Being(pp.113144) IGIGlobalScientificPublishing.YADAF.N.,KianiM,AliI.,AjayiK.,DhauraliS., SnapeL.,OurdylN. GravesandeT,PalleM. Amutah-OnukaghaN,Examiningthe influenceoffoodinsecurityonperinatalhealthoutcomesamongBlackbirthing individualsintheU.S.:Asystematicscopingreview.(2025)JournalofRacialand EthnicHealthDisparities.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-025-02364-2
Publishedtwoeditorialsthisyear:
Amutah-Onukagha,N. YADAF.N.,OldenH.A. AdvancingBirthQualitybyBridging HistoricalandContemporaryGapsonBlackMaternalHealth (2025).Journalof Obstetric,Gynecologic&NeonatalNursing DOI:101016/jjogn202503003
OldenH.A.,YADAFN. WhereAreAlltheBlackMidwives?(2025)Journalof Obstetric,Gynecologic&NeonatalNursing.DOI:10.1016/j.jogn.2025.03.004
Publishedapreprintofadissertationpaper,whichwassubsequently peerreviewedandpublishedasanopen-accessarticleinPopulations.
YADAF.N.,BrownC.S,HuberL.R.,OlorunsaiyeC.Z. Amutah-Onukagha,N.,Starker GlassT. (2025).TypeofAttendantatbirthbydetailedmaternalnativityamong US-born,Caribbean-born,andSub-SaharanAfrican-bornBlackwomen PreprintsDOI:10.20944/preprints202502.1909.v1.YADAF.N.,KianiM,AliI.,AjayiK., DhauraliS,SnapeL OurdylN,GravesandeT PalleM,Amutah-Onukagha N.Examiningtheinfluenceoffoodinsecurityonperinatalhealthoutcomes amongBlackbirthingindividualsintheU.S.:Asystematicscopingreview (2025) JournalofRacialandEthnicHealthDisparities https//doiorg/101007/s40615025-02364-2
Dr.YadawasawardedtheNatalieV.ZuckerEarlyCareerResearcherAwardfrom theZuckerResearchCenteratTuftsSchoolofMedicine.
2025RESEARCHEXCELLENCE&RECOGNITION
DR.HEATHEROLDEN
PUBLICATIONS
AneditorialintheJournalofObstetric,Gynecologic,andNeonatalNursing(JOGNN)-
Citation:Olden,H.A.,&YADA,F.N.(2025).WhereAreAlltheBlackMidwives?JournalofObstetric Gynecologic &NeonatalNursing(SpecialSeries:BlackMaternalHealth) 54(3)334-337.
PRESENTATION
PresentationattheAmericanPublicHealthAssociationinWashington DCinNovember2025titled “SupportingDoulaEnrollmentinMassHealth:ACommunity-DrivenToolkit”
Co-authors:ZulimahSawab,ChristinaGebel,MPH LCCE BirthDoula;ElysiaLarson JerricaRaspberry Lawson,NdidiamakaAmutah-Onukagha PhD,MPH
Presentation:PosterattheAmericanPublicHealthAssociationinWashington,DCinNovember2025titled, “WhatRespectfulMaternityCareMeanstoNon-HispanicBlackMothersInMassachusetts:AQualitative Analysis”
Co-authors:FaridaYada,PhD MPH;ChristinaGebel,MPH,LCCE,BirthDoula;ElysiaLarson,ScD MPH; JeannetteMyrick,MPH,NdidiamakaAmutah-Onukagha PhD,MPH
CONCLUDINGREFLECTIONS
Toadvancematernal and women’shealthequityatscale,our most pressingcross-cuttingneedsinclude:
NationalReach&Influence
Amplifying our leadership beyond state borders to shape the future of maternal and women’s health through research, policy, and replicable models of care.
Community-RootedEngagement Infrastructure
Deepeningpartnershipsandbuildingsystems that prioritize trust,accessibility,and sustained collaborationwith thecommunitiesmost impacted bymaternal healthinequities.
InnovationforEquity
Developing, testing,and scaling tech-enabled andcommunity-informedsolutionsthatimprove outcomesandeliminate disparitiesinmaternal and women’shealth.
StrategicVisibility& ThoughtLeadership
Elevating our presencethrough convenings, publications,andcoalitionsthatalign with institutional priorities and positionusasa national catalyst for change.
