My sister had health insurance; she should have been warned by her doctors that she was at risk. But she was a minority. The doctors took little interest in her as an individual, and she fell through the cracks. And died.

The number of maternal deaths is significantly understated because of a lack of effective data collection both in the US and around the world.

I get happy very easily and very often.

There is a largely-ignored healthcare calamity in the United States that sees between two and three women die every day during pregnancy and childbirth.

I became a fierce advocate for gentle birth as a solution for the most pressing problems of our times - a solution that begins at the source.

My sister and the baby she was carrying died in the United States of America. They died in the country that spends more money on pregnancy and birth technology than any other country in this world.

Pregnant women who are at risk for suffering complications and even death are in the prime of their lives. The most affected populations are minorities, Native Americans, immigrants, and women living in poverty and who speak little or no English.