Willowbrook, CA – Brianna Mckenzie, a 23-year-old mother, was just hours away from delivering her baby at MLK Community Hospital when she faced an unsettling choice. Her feverish condition was a potential sign of infection, and her mother feared complications. Should she opt for a cesarean section or continue with her labor?
With uncertainty in the air, Certified Nurse Midwife Angela Sojobi reassured Mckenzie’s mother: “We will not let anything bad happen to her.”
Just five hours later, Brianna delivered a healthy baby boy, Javen Lucas, with Sojobi’s steady guidance. But this was no ordinary birth. MLKCH is working hard to change the statistics for Black women like Brianna, who are at far higher risk for complications during childbirth.
Since its opening in 2015, MLKCH has embraced a unique approach to childbirth—combining the expertise of obstetricians with the nurturing care of certified nurse midwives like Sojobi. While only about 10% of U.S. hospital births involve midwives, our model is credited with reducing unnecessary C-sections and creating a safer, more empathetic birthing experience.
And it’s working: our unique midwife-led model has helped the hospital maintain some of the lowest C-section rates in California, with just 13% of first-time, low-risk births resulting in a C-section, compared to the statewide average of nearly 25 percent.
Read the full Los Angeles Times article about how MLKCH’s innovative midwife-led model is serving as a model to birth outcomes for Black women. (Paid subscription may be required)