Former First Daughter, global health advocate and venture capitalist Chelsea Clinton is promoting the start-up company Oula, a midwife-centered maternity clinic that provides “a middle ground approach to birth and pregnancy care” located in Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York. Oula delivers personalized care to reduce emergency C-sections and preterm birth rates.
At a recent event with Oula co-founder and COO Elaine Purcell, Clinton delivered the startling statistic “that women delivering today are 50% more likely to die in childbirth or from childbirth-related complications than our own mothers were,” with the crisis disproportionately affecting Black and brown women.
Clinton continues to promote Oula by amplifying the recent article in The Guardian, ‘Can midwifery startups change our broken maternity care?’
Very proud to be an investor in Oula as they continue to build a midwife-centered care model that has better outcomes for mothers & babies alike. Great read on their work and the very real impact they’re having on the lives of their patients. https://t.co/oDIOcKsTbZ
— Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) December 5, 2023
The article includes an interview with Oula patient Taylor-Rey J’Vera, who identifies as a Black and Puerto Rican plus-sized, non-binary lesbian. They became pregnant with their first child in 2021. When J’Vera was referred to Oula and learned that the primary practitioners were midwives, they admitted to imagining “people sitting in a ‘kumbaya’ circle while ladies are screaming their head off,” according to The Guardian.
J’Vera’s preconceived notions were dispelled when they arrived at Oula for their first appointment. J’Vera said she was impressed with the office’s aesthetics — a “Gwyneth Paltrow vibe” (interior design featuring beige, cream and muted pinks), and felt welcomed by the midwife who asked J’Vera for their pronoun.
[Note: In October 2021, J’Vera gave birth to a son, River.]
Since 2019, Purcell and Oula co-founder and CEO Adrianne Nickerson have raised $22.3 million in venture capital. Earlier this year, Oula was included in Fast Company‘s 10 Most Innovative Healthcare Companies in 2023.
BTW, below is one decor winner Paltrow’s GOOP recommends, for comparison.
