Our Narrative Shifting Projects
The Yelp for the Health Equity Movement: An App That Shares Experiences of Bias in Maternal Care
Introducing irth--Birth. Without the B for bias.
Share Your Story. Find a hospital or doctor review from someone just like you.
Be in the know!
Latest News: Irth walks away from the NY Health Challenge at @Hofstra with the 3rd place prize package of $14,500 AND the Community Impact Award of $5,000.
Past News: Irth receives a $200,000 grant from the Tara Health Foundation and $100,000 from the Grove Foundation!!! Press release here
Past News: Irth wins Media for Change Award at MIT Hackathon!!!
Irth™ disrupts the notion that all women experience the same hospital or doctor in the same way. We believe everyone deserves a fair medical experience and the knowledge and tools to make that happen.
The truth is, compelling research proves that implicit bias, including your race, class, gender identification, marital status or even sexual orientation can impact the care and treatment you receive.
Reading the hospital review of a middle-class white woman does not help a low-income black woman, a transgender person, or a same-sex couple understand what their experience may be like at the same place.
While the impact of implicit bias on patient care is now widely accepted in academic and scientific research circles, until now there has been no consumer application to capture and share experiences of bias.
With Irth, you tell us exactly who you are (such as your age, race, ethnicity, marital status, gender, sexual orientation, city, state, insurance type, etc.) and we find a review from a person most like you, instead of not like you at all.
Think of it as Yelp for experiences of bias and discrimination in maternity care. It's the experiential sharing platform for the health equity movement.
In the most recent Listening to Mothers national childbearing survey, 21% of black mothers and 19% of Hispanic mothers hospitalized for childbirth reported perceptions of poor treatment due to race, ethnicity, cultural background, or language.
Yet we continue to only rank maternity services on availability of private rooms, the food and whether you can have overnight visitors.
This focus on rating hospitals on amenities versus the “experience” is rooted in a false assumption that the care will be equal for everyone.
Unfortunately, the evidence proves this is simply not true. We need a new metric.
As we collect the intersectional experiences of birth at U.S. hospitals, we will use this information to push for social change and greater accountability among hospital and physician practices.
Bias in medical care has been linked to the country’s high infant mortality and maternal mortality rates. It has been linked to higher mortality rates for many diseases, such as cancer.
Irth creates awareness and evidence as to how health care providers, systems and policies may be stacked against specific groups within our society. It builds a community of Irth-ers who stand up for bias-free care.
The app’s back end data repository can be used to develop hospital ranking products, databases and research on C-section rates, breastfeeding rates and other measures of medical care across intersectional lines.
Narrative Nation is actively seeking funding opportunities to fully develop the Irth app and the business model.
A MESSAGE FROM THE CREATOR:
"I am on a mission to equalize the experience of giving birth for every person in this country. "
"I had my first child days after completing my master’s degree at Columbia University. I was unwed and on student insurance. At the hospital, which was supposedly one of the best in New York City based on all the mainstream ranking services, I was completely disrespected, my wishes were ignored and I left feeling traumatized and violated. I was treated like an unwed black woman with basic insurance and I always wondered why a hospital that had treated others so well, treated me so poorly.
Four years later, I delivered my second child with my husband by my side and the “good insurance” of my corporate employer. It was a completely different experience. The truth is, every day different types of people walk into the same hospital and leave with starkly contrasting experiences, with the most key variables being race, class and marital status.
Researchers at Stanford University and others have documented what women have been saying all the time — implicit bias impacts the care and treatment we receive.
Every one deserves an empowered birth experience where they are honored and respected for who they are, not treated differently, disrespectfully or inadequately because of who they are. I created the concept of the irth app to ensure that possibility for everyone."
The Irth Team is GROWING!!
JOB POSTING: Community Engagement Coordinator (Independent Contractor Position)
Three Positions Available ( Sacramento, Los Angeles, and Twin Cities)
Part Time/Temp: 20 hours per week
Narrative Nation, Inc.
Narrative Nation, Inc, a New York City based non-profit that creates narrative-centered technology and multimedia products to address racial disparities in maternal and infant health is expanding its team to advance Black birth equity via our “community first” engagement process.
Irth App
Irth (as in Birth, but we dropped the B for bias) is the first-of-its-kind review and recommendation engine designed for Black and brown women and birthing people to find and leave reviews of Ob/GYNs, birthing hospitals, and pediatricians. The app builds community with a platform for local crowd-sourced peer reviews, while driving transparency and accountability within health systems. On the back end, Irth turns its structured reviews into detailed Black patient experience data, strategic insights, and hospital improvement plans to help health systems “learn from the living” to provide more respectful and equitable care. Learn more at www.irthapp.com.
Position Summary
We are seeking a highly motivated, community-oriented coordinator to support the growth of community engagement, birth worker support and review collection. The successful candidate will be responsible for coordinating administrative and community engagement efforts to ensure the Irth App’s strategic growth, The Community Engagement Coordinator will work closely with the National Community Engagement Manager, National Executive Team, Program Managers, and other staff to establish relationships with community members and organizations and implement engagement strategies that align with the organization’s mission and goals.
The Community Engagement Coordinator is a virtual position that will also oversee recruitment, administrative operations and management of the local Irth Ambassador Program cohort. The Irth Ambassador Program is an innovative model to activate doulas and other birth workers as trusted advocates to help capture Irth reviews while providing wrap-around support and benefits. Learn more about the program, here.
Responsibilities:
- Develop local community engagement strategies and initiatives, alongside national Irth leadership, to devise contacts and partnership with local community-based organizations and businesses to promote the Irth App; monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of community strategies and make recommendations for improvement
- Develop and lead in recruitment, hiring and processing for the local Bay Area Irth Ambassador Cohort, alongside National Irth Leadership
- Lead administrative oversight of the Local Irth Ambassador Cohort; such as reviewing monthly stipend requirements, processing payroll, event assignment, event promotion, etc.
- Lead and represent Irth at meetings, birth worker events and community events, and serve as a liaison between the organization and community members
- Develop and maintain a database of community contacts and partnerships
- Oversee and monitor local community events calendar and local community engagement strategies
- Collaborate with Irth Social Media team to lead region on Instagram, Facebook & TikTok presence
- Assist in local budget preparation and maintenance; track and report on spending
- Other duties as needed; flexibility and adaptability as we build a new program is a must
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in a related field (e.g. communications, marketing, social work, community development) or equivalent work experience
- 1 year experience in the birth worker field (doula, lactation counselor, community health worker, patient care technician, OB technician, etc.)
- Knowledge of community engagement best practices and trends; strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build relationships with diverse groups of people
- Proficiency in Google G Suite and Microsoft Office
- Familiarity and comfortability with social media platforms and marketing strategies (Facebook, Instagram & TikTok)
- Ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-paced environment
- Ability to work independently and as part of a virtual team within different time zones
- Availability to work flexible hours, including evenings and weekends as needed
Physical Requirements:
This job may require occasional lifting, carrying, pushing, or pulling of objects up to 25 pounds. It may also require sitting or standing for extended periods of time and traveling to off-site locations.
Salary and Benefits:
This is a part-time and grant-funded temporary position, with a salary of $30 per hour. There are no benefits associated with this position.
To Apply:
Please submit a resume and cover letter to Sheridan Blackwell, Head of System Change at Sblackwell@irthapp.com with the appropriate subject line “Sacramento – Community Engagement Coordinator” , “Los Angeles – Community Engagement Coordinator”, or “Twin Cities – Community Engagement Coordinator” In your cover letter, please explain your interest in the position and how your skills and experience align with the responsibilities and qualifications listed above. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled
- PLEASE SHARE WITH ALL APPROPRIATE NETWORKS!!!!!
Irth in the News
