Perinatal Voices Podcast – district of columbia perinatal quality collaborative

DC Perinatal Voices Podcast

The DC Perinatal Quality Collaborative is proud to launch DC Perinatal Voices, a podcast dedicated to advancing maternal health through storytelling, connection, and collaboration. Rooted in the work of the DC PQC and the AIM initiative, DC Perinatal Voices highlights not just outcomes, but relationships and bringing forward stories, insights, and best practices that strengthen our collective commitment to improving maternal health across the District. This series shines a light on people, programs, and partnerships. Each episode will feature clinicians, patient partners, and community organizations sharing lived experiences that foster understanding and inspire change.

Episode 4: Midwifery Care: What it is & Why it Matters for Patients & Care Teams

In this episode of DC Perinatal Voices, Midwifery Care: What it is and Why it Matters to Patients and Care Teams, host Yolette Gray sits down with Nephthalie Smith, a midwife at Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center GW Health, to unpack the critical role midwives play in today’s care teams. With a foundation in nursing and a deeper commitment to patient-centered care, Nephthalie shares her journey into midwifery – and what it truly means to support families through pregnancy, birth, and beyond.

Go inside the model of care that’s improving experiences and outcomes: one that blends clinical excellence with advocacy, treats pregnancy as a holistic journey, and strengthens collaboration between midwives and obstetrics providers. For clinicians, it’s a closer look at team-based care in action. For patients and families, it’s insight into care that prioritizes their voice, their choices, and their experience.

Episode 3: The Relationship That Changed Her Care: A Story of Trust & Being Heard

In this episode of DC Perinatal Voices, The Relationship That Changed Her Care: A Story of Trust & Being Heard, host Yolette Gray speaks with Janille Thompson, a Washington DC native mother of three, and public health professional with over 15 years of experience in nutrition education and health promotion.

As an active patient partner, Janille shares her journey through three distinct birth experiences and highlights the importance of building strong relationships with providers, asking questions, and advocating for oneself throughout pregnancy. Her story underscores that trust, preparation, and open communication are essential to safe, respectful, and high-quality maternal care, and serves as a powerful reminder that improving maternal health begins with truly listening to patients.

Episode 2: Safe Babies, Safe Moms

For our second episode, Safe Babies, Safe Moms, host Yolette Gray sits down with Physician Executive Director of Women’s Health Service Line at MedStar Health and Chair of Women’s and Infants’ Services at MedStar Washington Hospital Center Dr. Tamika Auguste.

Dr. Auguste takes us inside Safe Babies, Safe Moms – Collaboration in Action, a groundbreaking, family-centered program tackling disparities in maternal and infant outcomes from pre-pregnancy through early childhood. She shares how MedStar Health and community partners are closing equity gaps, expanding behavioral health supports, and redefining what holistic prenatal care looks like. This episode is a reminder that teamwork is crucial and listening to patients changes everything.

Episode 1: Building a Culture of Safety

For our first episode, Building a Culture of Safety, host Yolette Gray sits down with Dr. Melissa Fries, former executive clinical director of the DC PQC and the director of genetics and fetal medicine at MedStar Washington Hospital Center.

Dr. Fries takes us back to where it all began, the vision that sparked the PQC, the community that built it, and the mission that keeps it moving forward. From tackling hypertension to addressing systemic inequities, she reminds us that real change starts with collaboration, compassion, and boots on the ground.