Amittia (she/her) is a social worker, researcher, trainer, and mama scholar. She is an Assistant Professor at Georgetown University, Thrive Center. Her community-engaged research, training, scholarship, and service focus on advancing minority mental health and equity, particularly among families that are pregnant and parenting young children. Amittia has worked for 15 years as a mental health consultant across a variety of settings, including home-based services, childcare centers, school-based services, and health clinics. She serves in leadership and supportive roles in local, state, and national venues focused on infant and early childhood, Black communities, and Black social workers. She was awarded for Advancing Minority Mental Health and for the Alice Eberhart Wright Visionary Award, Recognizing Excellence in the Field of Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health. Amittia is passionate about facilitating transformative and healing spaces that center wellness, critical reflection, meaningful dialogue, and change.
Addressing Maternal Health Disparities: Understanding Maternal Health Decision-Making
This project addresses ongoing disparities in maternal mental health, with a particular focus on Black women and other marginalized birthing people in Washington, D.C. Maternal mental health challenges are a major cause of preventable morbidity and mortality, often exacerbated by intersecting structural barriers and inequities. While multi-level risks and resources shape health outcomes, their impact on decision-making about mental health care remains insufficiently understood. Grounded in intersectional feminist theory and guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, this study leverages existing qualitative datasets to examine pathways to mental health supports within maternal health interventions. Analyses will center the lived experiences and agency of perinatal women, identify key bioecological factors—such as stigma, access barriers, and the effects of racism and gender-based discrimination—and evaluate how these shape shared decision-making and outcomes. The findings will inform more equitable maternal health and mental health practices and contribute to broader efforts to dismantle oppression and promote wellness.