Roundtable discussion on reproductive healthcare in Akron gathers doctors, advocates
Rep. Emilia Sykes gathers members of the Ohio healthcare community.
“If it were just one issue, we could maybe have figured it out, but it is just not nearly that simple,” said U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes in regard to reproductive health in the United States.
Sykes hosted a roundtable conversation to advocate for reproductive health Friday afternoon at the Knight Stage in downtown Akron. The discussion included local physicians, healthcare workers and patients as well as U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, the House Minority Whip, who discussed the state of reproductive health in Ohio ahead of the November election.
This discussion came after a Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas judge temporarily blocked a law at the end of August that contains restrictions on abortions in Ohio and while Ohioans are still waiting on a final decision regarding the 6-week abortion ban.
Healthcare professionals want standardized training and procedures
In the United States, medical training on abortion is not standardized among states, said Dr. Amy Burkett, a member of the Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights. She said this is true of education around reproductive health in general.
The lack of educational standards is “not fair” to medical students or to patients, Burkett said. She said in cases where training relies on textbooks and simulations, students do not get a grasp of the nuances of human anatomy.
“You can’t simulate that,” Burkett said.
And the challenge is that since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, there has been an increase in medical practitioners seeking jobs in states other than the ones they studied in. “They’re not giving the level of care that the clients deserve,” said Jazmin Long, the president and CEO of Birthing Beautiful Communities, a Cleveland nonprofit.
Laura Donovan, a retired nurse who worked for 41 years in the healthcare industry, added that nurses need to constantly practice their skills so they can be prepared for emergencies.
“An emergency cannot be the first time someone practices a skill. It’s not gonna work,” Donovan said.
Patients need support, reproductive health resources
The other side of healthcare disparity is that patients do not always have the support they need to advocate for themselves. At Birthing Beautiful Communities, doulas and support coaches empower clients to ask questions, Long said.
“You go to your doctor’s appointment and you wait until your hand is on the door to ask the most pressing question that you’ve had the entire appointment,” Long said.
This happens not only to patients without support systems but also to doctors going to their own medical appointments, she said.
Donovan recommended that if a situation is not working for a patient, they should seek other options.
“I mean you wouldn’t rehire a plumber that did a crappy job or a painter that didn’t do a good job painting,” Donovan said.
She added that there are more doctors out there, and although the process of changing doctors may be “painful,” patients should shop around.
Additional reproductive healthcare resources include:
- Planned Parenthood: The nonprofit organization’s website features an assortment of educational resources, including a free chat line where individuals can confidentially message a health educator.
- Summit County Public Health: The county health department partners with Full Term. First Birthday to connect Greater Akron residents with services before, during and after pregnancy.
By: Reegan Davis Saunders
Source: Signal Akron