In January of this year, Minnesota’s Dignity in Pregnancy and Childbirth Act (MN DiPC; MN § 144.1461) went into effect. The law addresses inequities in maternal health care and includes a requirement for hospitals with obstetric care and birth centers to develop or access a continuing education course on anti-racism training and implicit bias.
In response, the Center for Antiracism Research for Health Equity, in partnership with Diversity Science and the Minnesota Department of Health, announced the launch of the free Minnesota MN DiPC Black birthing modules. The overall goal of the project is to empower perinatal care providers with the foundational knowledge, insights, and skills they need to ensure that Black and Indigenous women and birthing people receive fully equitable patient-centered, respectful, high-quality care, free of bias and discrimination.
The modules will also serve as a starting point for organizations in addressing health equity and structural racism. This shared knowledge base and language can serve as common ground for future dialogue, advocacy, training, capacity building, and policy changes that will ultimately create the institutional change needed to improve the health and well-being of all patients.
