CDC’s Hear Her™ Campaign
Hear Her™ campaign personal stories
The Hear Her™ campaign features compelling stories from women about their experiences during or after pregnancy. They share how pregnancy-related complications or conditions have affected them and how they got help. This is an example of how first-person narratives can provide data to frame a public health issue.
In recent years, women of color, particularly African Americans, have voiced concerns about treatment by some healthcare providers. They have reported instances when their symptoms, such as extremely high blood pressure, which can result in poor birth outcomes, including premature or stillborn births or maternal death, are discounted. High profile examples include tennis great Serena Williams, who had major pregnancy complications, and Olympic medalists Tori Bowie, who died giving birth, and Allyson Felix, who underwent an emergency C-section. Here at CDC, Dr. Shalon Irving died from hypertension associated with her pregnancy. As African American women, each experienced bias by the medical establishment.
The Hear Her™ campaign, supported by the CDC Foundation with funding from Merck, seeks to raise awareness of urgent maternal warning signs during and after pregnancy and to improve communication between patients and their healthcare providers. The campaign targets healthcare professionals who interact with pregnant or postpartum women, as well as people who are pregnant or have given birth within the last year and their support networks.
As part of its agenda to address maternal morbidity and mortality, CDC works to improve data surveillance and infrastructure at state levels. This CDC report is a collaboration between two CDC initiatives—ERASE MM (Enhancing Reviews and Surveillance to Eliminate Maternal Mortality) and MMRIA (Maternal Mortality Review Information App). The goal of the publication is to help move data into action to address maternal mortality rates in the U.S.
Hear Her™ campaign posters
¿Embarazada ahora o en el último año?
¿Embarazada ahora o en el último año?
Pregnant or within the last year? poster
Pregnant or within the last year? poster
Listening can be your most important tool. poster
Listening can be your most important tool. poster
Mom's health matters too. poster
Mom's health matters too. poster
Asking whether my patient had been pregnant in the last year may have helped save her life. poster
Asking whether my patient had been pregnant in the last year may have helped save her life. poster
The most basic tool can save a life. poster
The most basic tool can save a life. poster
I asked if my patient had been pregnant in the past year. That critical question led to a life-saving diagnosis. poster
I asked if my patient had been pregnant in the past year. That critical question led to a life-saving diagnosis. poster
Listening can be your most important tool. poster
Listening can be your most important tool. poster
Which one of these people was recently pregnant? poster
Which one of these people was recently pregnant? poster
You Know Your Body Best leaflet
You Know Your Body Best leaflet
You Know Your Body Best leaflet
Usted conoce su cuerpo mejor que nadie. leaflet
Usted conoce su cuerpo mejor que nadie. leaflet
Usted conoce su cuerpo mejor que nadie. leaflet
Focusing in On American Indian/Alaska Native people
American Indian and Alaska Native women are two times more likely to die of pregnancy-related causes than White women. Like African Americans, they have experienced historic trauma and often experience discrimination or racism. They also often face barriers to care including higher rates of poverty and long distances to obtain quality healthcare services.
In recognition of the specific needs of AI/AN communities, the Hear Her™ campaign developed materials targeting AI/AN people and their healthcare providers.
