Pere DeRoy

Pere DeRoy: I am a doctoral candidate in the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) program at the University of Kansas specializing in transnational Reproductive Policy and Administration in North America and the English-speaking Caribbean, and the dynamic interplay between the two regions.​ I am a birth and postpartum doula, childbirth educator, lactation, sexual and reproductive health, and contraceptive counselor. My approach to birth work and health disparity and equity research is that of a scholar advancing knowledge production for better practice.

My current research explores the impact formal state-sanctioned biomedicine and traditional healthcare systems have on pregnancy-related healthcare and birth outcomes in terms of maternal mortality and morbidity.  I aim to explore and examine stories of causation that shape healthcare policies and practices in ways that expand our understanding of what accounts for health disparities in n effort to advance health perspectives and behaviors.