Black Maternal Health Is a Family Issue: How Fathers Make a Difference

Being present, speaking up, and staying involved during pregnancy can make a real difference for Black mothers and their families.

Black maternal health is often called a crisis. After going through two pregnancies with my wife and thinking about what many families have lost, I believe we need to ask: who can help make things better?

This question has stayed with me, not only as a coach who works with fathers, but also as a husband and dad who knows firsthand what’s at stake during pregnancy.

The statistics are clear: Black women in the United States face much higher risks during pregnancy and childbirth. But numbers alone don’t tell the full story. The environment around a mother, and how it shapes her experience, is just as important.

Fathers are a key part of that environment. Not symbolically. But practically.

A Shift in Understanding

When my wife was pregnant with our first child, we knew the risks. She was over 35, which meant she was considered "advanced maternal age", a label with its own medical concerns. She did her research, asked tough questions, and came prepared to every appointment.

I remember one moment clearly. After a prenatal visit, my wife came home quieter than usual. The doctor had brushed off a concern she raised, not rudely, but they were just quick to move on. She didn’t say much that night, but I could tell she was thinking about it. That’s when I realized my job wasn’t to reassure her, but to ask, "What do you need to feel heard?"

Shifting from passive support to being actively present changed how I approached both pregnancies. We stayed involved, asked follow-up questions, went to appointments together when possible, and made sure her concerns were heard and addressed.

We were lucky. Both pregnancies and deliveries went well.

But I often think about the women who did everything right and still didn’t make it home. Their stories are a big reason why this is important.

The Reality: Outcomes Are Not Equal

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black women in the U.S. are about three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women. The National Institutes of Health reports that these differences persist regardless of a woman's income or education.

That fact is important. Education and income, though often seen as protective factors, do not close this gap.

Consider Dr. Shalon Irving. She was a CDC epidemiologist with two master's degrees and a dual-subject Ph.D. She spent her career studying how structural racism shapes health outcomes. She knew the data better than almost anyone. And on January 28, 2017, just three weeks after giving birth to her daughter Soleil, Shalon collapsed and died from complications of high blood pressure. Her friends later said she had grown exhausted from advocating for herself. The system didn't listen.

In October 2020, Dr. Chaniece Wallace, a 30-year-old pediatric chief resident at Indiana University, welcomed her daughter Charlotte via emergency C-section after developing preeclampsia. Two days later, she was gone. Her husband, Anthony, wrote online about the fight she put up: "Chaniece fought with every piece of strength, courage, and faith she had available." She was a doctor. She had access to care. It still wasn’t enough.

Also in 2020, Amber Rose Isaac, a 26-year-old Bronx woman working toward her master's degree, spent weeks telling her healthcare providers she didn't feel well. She tweeted about dealing with what she called "incompetent doctors." She died on April 21, 2020, after an emergency C-section. Her son Elias survived. Her partner, Bruce McIntyre, has spent the years since fighting to make sure it doesn't happen to another family.

These women were educated, cared for, and loved. Their deaths didn’t have to happen. As the CDC says, they were preventable.

Research from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the March of Dimes shows several reasons for these outcomes: chronic stress, bias in healthcare, and differences in care quality. It’s not just about access, it’s about whether women’s concerns are heard, believed, and acted on.

How Fathers Impact Outcomes

1. They Reduce Stress

Chronic stress is a major cause of poor maternal outcomes. The National Institutes of Health connects it to high blood pressure, preeclampsia, preterm birth, and other complications. For Black women, stress comes from many sources: dealing with a healthcare system that often dismisses them, daily life, and the burden of knowing the statistics.

Fathers can’t take all that stress away, but they can help reduce it at home. By creating stability, sharing the mental and physical load, and being present, not just for big appointments, but in the everyday moments of pregnancy, they make a difference.

Small, steady acts of being present can lower stress. That matters more than many people realize.

2. They Strengthen Advocacy in Medical Settings

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists identifies clear communication as essential to good maternal outcomes. But research consistently shows that Black women are more likely to report feeling unheard by their care teams.

Amber Rose Isaac felt that. Shalon Irving felt that. Dr. Wallace’s colleagues have said that, even within a strong medical team, the severity of her condition wasn't recognized in time.

Fathers can change the atmosphere in the room, not by taking over, but by being present. They can ask follow-up questions, address concerns the mother has raised, and request that things be documented. When care providers know someone else is paying attention, they often respond differently.

The CDC's "Hear Her" campaign exists for exactly this reason: it highlights urgent warning signs during and after pregnancy and specifically encourages partners to speak up when something feels off.

3. They Increase Consistency in Care

Getting consistent prenatal care improves outcomes. The Office of Population Affairs highlights partner support as a key driver of attending prenatal visits, following care plans, and catching concerns early.

Fathers often don’t realize how much influence they have. When a partner is involved, asks questions after missed appointments, and reviews the birth plan together, it helps make sure nothing is overlooked.

A Needed Shift in How We Think About Fatherhood

If fathers help shape outcomes, then fatherhood begins earlier than many of us think.

It doesn’t start at birth. It starts during pregnancy, in the appointments, the conversations, and the willingness to pay attention and help.

That looks like:

• Paying attention to symptoms, changes, and concerns your partner mentions, even the ones that seem minor

• Go to prenatal appointments and ask questions. If you can’t be there, check in afterward.

• Build the birth plan together, so you both know what to do and who to contact if something doesn’t feel right.

• Be ready to speak up calmly and clearly if something during an appointment or delivery doesn’t feel right.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. What matters most is being intentional and present.

What Needs to Happen Next

To improve Black maternal health outcomes, we need to broaden the conversation and include fathers.

Organizations like the Black Mamas Matter Alliance are leading work focused on equity and community-based care. Advocates like Bruce McIntyre, who lost Amber Rose Isaac and went on to found the Save-A-Rose Foundation, are building what the system failed to provide. These are the people doing the real work, and they're creating room for fathers to be part of it.

Including fathers means teaching men about their role, making their presence in care settings normal, and raising awareness about stress, advocacy, and warning signs. Support doesn’t happen by itself—it has to be learned, practiced, and shown.

This goes beyond pregnancy. How we show up during those nine months shapes how we act as fathers, partners, and leaders in our families for years to come.

Final Thought

Shalon Irving. Chaniece Wallace. Amber Rose Isaac. These women should still be here.

Their stories aren’t only about what the healthcare system missed. They’re also about what those closest to them and all of us can learn from their loss.

If a mother’s environment shapes outcomes, then fathers are a key part of that environment. The actions we take, reducing stress, staying involved in care, speaking up when something feels wrong, and creating stability at home, can change what pregnancy feels like and sometimes even its outcome.

We won't close the Black maternal health gap with one approach. But actively, consistently, and with full awareness of what's at stake, bringing fathers into the conversation is a step we can't afford to skip.

If you're a father, a partner, or someone who is going to be: this matters now. Awareness is where presence begins.

Stay involved. Even in the moments that feel routine.

That's where your impact starts.

About the Author

Javaree Walker is the founder of Ready To Dad, a coaching platform that helps fathers stay calm, present, and connected under pressure. He serves on the Daddy Victory Club Board of Directors and as Vice Chair of the Advisory Board. Javaree is an ICF ACC certification candidate and writes about fatherhood, leadership, and family health.