League talk on state’s poor maternal health care on Oct. 15

The lack of adequate maternal health care in Tennessee and its devastating consequences will be the topic of a talk on Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 12 noon during the Lunch with the League meeting of the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge.  

The speaker will be Shana Watkins, an outreach coordinator with the Tennessee Justice Center (TJC) in Nashville.

The public is invited to attend the Lunch with the League from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike. All are welcome to bring their lunch or purchase a boxed lunch for a nominal fee. Coffee and tea will be served. The presentation will begin at noon.

For more than 18 years, Watkins worked in the education sector assisting families with children who were struggling with academic demands. Then she joined the Tennessee Justice Center and assumed the position titled “insure our kids outreach coordinator.”  

In this role,she focuses on children – and their families – who have no access to basic needs such as healthcare and food. Starting the cycle are mothers with no or inadequate access to maternal care – the healthcare that many women receive before, during and after childbirth to improve their wellbeing and guide them in making healthy choices based on evidence.

Low-income women lacking maternal care are subject to stressors that make it nearly impossible for their families to break the cycle of poverty, Watkins said.

In her position at the Tennessee Justice Center, Watkins is responsible for reaching out to schools and families all over the state to educate them on the services of TJC, which include assisting families in enrolling in and maintaining healthcare and food supplement benefits.  Much of her work in rural Tennessee communities involves coordinating community needs with state-level advocates.

A graduate of Western Kentucky University, Watkins received her M.A. degree at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Lunch with the League welcomes League members and nonmembers alike to this informative presentation. The League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge is a nonpartisan political organization for women and men. It encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.