Midwife dies during childbirth, reigniting Black maternal health conversation in NC
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- Midwife Dr. Janell Green Smith died during childbirth, sparking national debate
- Data show Black women face triple the pregnancy-related mortality of whites
- Experts urge protocol adherence, screening and respectful care to prevent deaths
A South Carolina midwife who lost her life to a cause she devoted an entire career to is reigniting a national conversation on the Black maternal health crisis.
Dr. Janell Green Smith advocated for Black people giving birth, but just days into the new year, she died while giving birth to her first child.
“When I see that, it says somebody didn’t listen and somebody didn’t follow protocol. We see that over and over again,” said Latoshia Rouse with Birth Sisters Doula Services. “Oftentimes when those things happen, it happens more for Black and brown women. We don’t get the best of everything and everyone all the time. I think this is systemic.”
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, data show Black women have the highest maternal mortality in the country. They are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women.
Health experts say providers can reduce pregnancy-related complications and death by asking questions to better understand their patients, understand the urgent maternal warning signs, respond to any concerns they might have and provide all patients with respectful, quality care.
“It was a top priority for me to find a woman I could identify with,” said Giszell Weather.
The 31-year-old Durham resident is 15 weeks pregnant and this is her third pregnancy working with a doula. It’s a critical resource she said she needed during pregnancy and in the delivery room.
“That I could feel safe and focused on surrendering and letting my body do what it needed to do,” she said.
More than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable. The national conversation taking place around Green Smith’s death leaves Black women questioning how to better protect themselves during pregnancy and childbirth.
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This story was originally published January 7, 2026 at 8:14 AM with the headline "Midwife dies during childbirth, reigniting Black maternal health conversation in NC."