ECU, Vidant OB-GYN earns award for advocacy on rights of incarcerated women

A faculty member and obstetrician in the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and Vidant Health has been honored for her efforts to pass legislation that, among other points, limits the use of shackles during labor and delivery for incarcerated women.

Dr. Kerianne Crockett, clinical assistant professor and OB-GYN, was one of 36 recipients of the 2021 Attorney General’s Dogwood Award. N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein announced the winners of the annual award that honors North Carolinians who work to keep people safe, healthy and happy in their communities.

Crockett pushed for legislation — House Bill 608, which became law last fall — alongside the North Carolina Obstetrical and Gynecological Society, contacting sheriffs across the state and advocating for pregnant women in jails and prisons.

In 2019, Crockett had a patient who was brought in from a local jail. She said the woman had ankle and wrist restraints, and deputies accompanying the patient would not remove them during labor and delivery, citing policy. Crockett witnessed the mother’s grief after the baby did not survive, and the experience spurred Crockett into action.

Dr. Kerianne Crockett received the Attorney General’s Dogwood Award for her advocacy for the rights of incarcerated pregnant and postpartum women. (Photo by Rhett Butler)

The new law not only significantly limits the use of shackles from the second trimester of pregnancy until six weeks post-partum, but also includes provisions related to nutrition, access to menstrual products, the facilitation of bonding and visitation with children.

“For years, North Carolina was in a minority of states that allowed pregnant women in jails and prisons to be shackled, putting women and their unborn children in grave danger,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “Because of Dr. Crockett’s leadership and advocacy, as well as the recommendations from groups including our Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice, that is no longer the case. Now, women who are incarcerated will get the reproductive health care they need with dignity, which is their right. Dr. Crockett spoke up for these women, and in doing so, helped protect their and their children’s lives.” 

Crockett’s journey to get the legislation passed was both rewarding and challenging as she navigated politics and professional commitment to what she believes is right. In the end, she played a part in bringing stakeholders from across the political spectrum together to agree on the legislation.

“On one hand, it was the natural, easy, obvious path. Like many of my friends and colleagues, my tendency toward compassion and capacity for empathy are the reasons I chose medicine,” Crockett said. “My patient’s experience left me with a heartache and grief that I needed to channel in a productive way. On the other hand, attempting to channel that energy in the face of first, status-quo related inertia and later, political dynamics, was daunting. It’s emotionally exhausting to feel strongly about something, have unanimous consensus from those around you confirming that yes, that thing you’re upset about is worth being upset about, but then come up against some seemingly immovable barriers.

“Being in such close proximity to the legislative process was interesting and inspiring in some ways, frustrating in others. Overall, the whole thing has been pretty life-altering.”

The Dogwood Award honors Crockett’s efforts and her professional characteristics that also align with the missions of ECU and Vidant.

“The Brody School of Medicine teaches compassion, and Vidant Health is committed to providing compassionate care. This award honors not only Dr. Crockett’s tireless work to improve the human experience, but also the invaluable intersection of health care and empathy,” said Dr. Michael Waldrum, dean of the Brody School of Medicine and CEO of Vidant Health.

Crockett was able to channel her passion into pushing for change, but she credits others for a long road of work.

“The language in the bill existed long before I became involved and is in large part the result of advocacy by several courageous survivors of experiences like my patient’s,” she said. “It also overlaps nicely with evidence-based recommendations from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) on the care of incarcerated pregnant people, as well as recommendations from the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC). To know that I played even a small part in making it more likely that pregnant people in North Carolina’s carceral system will be afforded the care that is outlined in the law is very fulfilling.”

The experience that led Crockett into advocacy changed her life and the way she looks at her career.

“I think I will forever think of my life as a doctor as ‘before’ and ‘after’ the night I took care of the patient whose experience started this. Like I alluded to before, compassion and empathy have always come naturally to me, but, before this, I didn’t really regard them as the strengths I now know they are. I felt like I needed to ‘prove’ myself as a physician in other ways. I now know that they are just as important as intelligence, work ethic, technical skill or whatever other capability you might hope your doctor possesses.”

Crockett also hopes that her experience advocating to legislation from bill to law inspires medical students, residents and citizens to act when they see a need for change. She also hopes it instills in future physicians a penchant for advocacy.

“Residents and students who have worked with me over the last several years have heard me say this a million times and will probably roll their eyes: doctors engage in civic processes, even voting, at a much lower rate than peers in other professions. The reasons are multifactorial, but the result is laws and policies that impact our profession and our patients but that have been crafted without our input,” she said. “If this story inspires medical students, residents, other health care professionals, or really anyone in our community to get involved with an issue that has been nagging at them, then that is just wonderful.”