DETROIT – New March of Dimes research shows access to maternity care is worsening for millions of women in the United States. The news comes during a critical time for hospitals struggling with maternity unit closures, recruitment, and staffing.
Across Metro Detroit, the March of Dimes is doing its part to help women get the prenatal care they need, but also to help families when their child has to spend time in the neonatal intensive care unit.
“So just being there was very scary”’ said Latasha Davidson. “The alarms are constantly going off, the beeps, the crying, the screaming. It is a very scary place.”
All moms have a story about birth. For 39-year-old Latasha Davidson, her story involved life and death. She gave birth to twins at 30 weeks. Her son Kane survived; however, her daughter Ellington did not.
“They told us that her lungs were underdeveloped and that she didn’t have much longer to live,” Davidson recalled. “It’s also difficult to have a twin lose a twin because that twin is a constant reminder of the child you lost. But it’s also difficult to go back to the NICU every day. And for some, for a period of time, he was right next to where his sister passed.”
Her son Kane spent 42 days in the NICU. He struggled with gaining weight and maintaining his temperature.
Davidson knows all too well the struggle and knows how important the work the March of Dimes does for mothers of preemies.
“If they’re like me, who has never been to the NICU, never had a family member that had a baby in the NICU, you’re like a fish out of water. You don’t know who to call, who to ask questions to, you just know you’re trying to get your baby out safely,” Davidson said.
Kane’s baby sister was born exactly one year after Ellington had passed. Latasha and her husband Tommy are so grateful for their family. They are, of course, still heartbroken over the loss of Ellington and try to share their story to help other families, and that’s how they connected with the March of Dimes, to get the word out on what the organization does.
“So the March of Dimes is so important to have for the women to advocate, to help them with resources, to just be that friend that they need during that time, resources they help with,” said Takara Prestage, with March of Dimes.
Resources like a NICU family advocate, supportive pregnancy care, community impact programs, and work to fix the maternity desert that so many women deal with.
“Everyone should care because they have a mother. They have a grandmother, they may have a sister, they may have cousins. It’s not just for women, it’s for families. It’s to support the entire family,” Prestage said. “It’s for advocacy. It’s for resources. It’s for knowledge, so that we’re all educated on the things that babies need.”
Local 4 is a proud sponsor of the Signature Chefs Feeding Motherhood event. It’s next week, Thursday, Oct. 19, at the Roostertail. Tickets are still available. You get to stroll and eat lots of great food from different local chefs and help raise money for March of Dimes.
To find out more information, or to buy tickets, click here.