Implicit Bias: Impact on Maternal Health in Minority Populations
Course: #9663Level: Introductory 1 Hour 3 Reviews
This text course examines how implicit bias and structural racism contribute to disparities in maternal and infant health among minority populations in the United States. It defines and differentiates implicit and explicit bias, explains how bias forms and operates within clinical relationships and power differentials, and connects these forces to structural racism and to documented patterns of maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. Learners explore the most recent national data on these disparities, including the populations at highest and least visible risk, and the everyday clinical moments where bias is most likely to influence care. The course then turns to practical, evidence-informed strategies that individuals, teams, and systems can use to recognize and reduce the impact of bias and structural racism on childbearing patients and their infants. This course was designed for an interprofessional audience.
On Demand
Course Type: Text
CEUs/Hours Offered: AOTA/0.1 Introductory, Foundational Knowledge, 16627; CE Broker/1.0 CE Broker #20-1394137; IACET/0.1; NBCOT PDUs/1.25 Beginner, Education And/or Research
Learning Outcomes
- After this course, participants will be able to describe implicit and explicit bias, explain how each develops through lifespan socialization and can influence interprofessional team members’ interactions with childbearing patients, and identify resources team members can use to examine their own biases.
- After this course, participants will be able to recognize how bias and power differentials between clinicians and patients can affect the patient and the patient and team relationship.
- After this course, participants will be able to describe structural racism and how it forms, explain its impact on maternal health, and identify risk factors for and patterns of maternal morbidity and mortality across White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, and American Indian and Alaska Native populations in the United States.
- After this course, participants will be able to describe infant mortality in the United States and its ties to maternal health, and explain the interprofessional team’s role in reducing the impact of implicit bias and structural racism for pregnant patients.
Course created on July 28, 2026
Agenda
| 0-5 Minutes | Introduction, relevance to the interprofessional team, and learning outcomes |
| 5-10 Minutes | Section 1: Implicit and explicit bias defined and differentiated. |
| 10-15 Minutes | Section 2: How bias forms: socialization, stereotypes, prejudice, and “isms” across the lifespan, with resources for self-examination. |
| 15-20 Minutes | Section 3: Bias, power differentials, and the patient. |
| 20-25 Minutes | Section 4: Structural racism: what it is, how it forms, and its impact on maternal health. |
| 25-35 Minutes | Section 5: Maternal morbidity and mortality: risk factors and patterns across populations. |
| 35-40 Minutes | Section 6: Infant mortality and its ties to maternal health. |
| 40-50 Minutes | Section 7: The interprofessional team's role in reducing bias and structural racism. |
| 50-55 Minutes | Application to team-based practice across disciplines. |
| 55-60 Minutes | Summary |
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Presented By
Calista Kelly
PT, DPT, ACEEAA, Cert. MDT
Senior Strategic Content Developer
Calista holds a master’s degree in physical therapy from St. Ambrose University and a doctorate degree (DPT) from the University of Mississippi. She obtained a credentialing certificate from the McKenzie Institute in 2011 and the CEEAA credential in 2014 from the Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy, an affiliate of the American Physical Therapy Association. In 2019, she completed the requirements for the Advanced Credentialed Exercise Expert for Aging Adults (ACEEAA) through the Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy. Calista has been licensed as a physical therapist since 2001 and has worked as a clinician in a variety of settings, including ICU, outpatient orthopedics/sports medicine, neuro, SNF/LTC, LTACH, wound care, home health, and pediatrics. Her practice interests are spine care, jurisprudence and healthcare law, orthopedics, acute care, wound care, and temporomandibular disorders.
More
Continued and its subsidiaries provide professional education authored by qualified Subject Matter Experts for continuing education purposes. These materials are intended for educational purposes and do not constitute medical advice or a substitute for individual clinical judgment. Continued is not a clinical healthcare provider; the licensed professional is solely responsible for ensuring that the application of any techniques or information presented is within their legal scope of practice and jurisdictional requirements.
Financial: Calista Kelly is employed by Continued.com.
Non-Financial: Calista Kelly has no non-financial disclosures.
Sponsor Disclosure: This Course is presented by OccupationalTherapy.com, a Continued site.
Content Disclosure: This learning event does not focus exclusively on any specific product or service.
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