Pittsburg, PA
Pitt study: Pregnant Black women disproportionately tested for drug use at hospitals
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Having a baby and being subjected to a drug test has been a long-running practice at hospitals in Pennsylvania.
But a recent University of Pittsburgh study shows race played a role in the testing.
“We found that regardless of the patient’s history of drug use, Black patients were disproportionately tested at labor and delivery,” said Dr. Marian Jarlenski, associate professor of health policy and management at Pitt.
Jarlenski, who led the research, believes the reason for the unequal testing is bias.
“We feel that these data add to what we know about why Black patients might feel distrustful of the medical system,” she said.
The research looked at data from nearly 40,000 women who delivered babies at an undisclosed, large health care system in Pennsylvania between 2018 and 2021. Seventy-six percent of the moms were white and 16 percent were Black.
“Among those who had not used any drugs in the year prior to having their baby, about 7 percent of Black patients were tested compared to about 4 percent of white patients,” Jarlenski said.
“Even if a mother, a Black mother, says that she is not using, she ends up being tested anyway And, that’s where the bias is and that’s what we have to deal with,” said Dr. Margaret Larkins-Pettigrew, Allegheny Health Network’s senior vice president and chief clinical diversity, equity and inclusion officer.
Larkins-Pettigrew said AHN works to incorporate anti-bias staff training at multiple stages.
“We talk about micro-aggressions,” she said. “We talk about privilege. We want to talk about all of those things that hadn’t been talked about before because we want people to be comfortable understanding their own bias.”
KDKA-TV asked UPMC to provide someone to interview on its procedures on implicit bias but was told no expert was available.
Meanwhile, Jarlenski believes discretionary drug testing of women giving birth could have a chilling effect.
“These kind of testing procedures are viewed as punitive by Black patients, and it may actually dissuade Black patients from seeking prenatal care,” she said.
The researcher said drug testing pregnant women is not a requirement and that there are other federally recommended screening tools.
The Pennsylvania health care system that was studied has changed its labor and delivery protocol.
The Pittsburgh Steelers will face the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day as part of a two-game showcase on Netflix.
A Brief History of the Steelers on Christmas Day
Wednesday’s matchup against the Chiefs will only be the third time the Steelers have played on Christmas Day in their history. Pittsburgh played on consecutive Christmas Days in 2016 and in ’17. They hold a 2–0 record on Christmas, beating the Baltimore Ravens in ’16 and the Houston Texans in ’17. A win over the Chiefs this year would allow the Steelers to keep their undefeated Christmas record.
The NFL first played Christmas games in 1971 when hosting two matchups: Dallas Cowboys vs. Minnesota Vikings and Kansas City Chiefs vs. Miami Dolphins. The league took a long break from hosting Christmas Day games until 1989. The NFL didn’t consistently showcase Christmas Day games until somewhat recently. Games on the holiday used to happened every few years or so, but now there’s been at least one if not more Christmas Day games every year since 2020.
The 2022 and ’23 seasons saw three Christmas Day games each, the most ever hosted on the holiday. It’s more rare for the NFL to have Christmas games compared to the long-standing tradition of Thanksgiving games.
Key Moments in Steelers’ Christmas Day History
The Steelers’ first Christmas Day game back in 2016 vs. the Ravens was one for the history books. Pittsburgh clinched the AFC North title after former receiver Antonio Brown scored a four-yard touchdown with nine seconds left in the game to give the Steelers a 31–27 victory. It’s always a huge win when the Steelers beat their AFC North rivals, but it helps that a playoff spot was on the line, too. Pittsburgh advanced to the AFC Championship that season, but lost to the eventual Super Bowl championship-winning New England Patriots.
The Steelers’ 2017 Christmas Day matchup vs. the Texans the following year wasn’t as nail-biting as Pittsburgh dominated 34–6. The Steelers scored four touchdowns in the game compared to the Texans’ one touchdown, which resulted in no two-point conversion. The Steelers would go on to lose in the wild-card round to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
It’s been so long since the Steelers have played in a Christmas Day game, though, as former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led the team to both of these key wins mentioned above. The Steelers are on their fourth starting quarterback since Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season.
By the Numbers: Steelers’ Christmas Day Record
The Steelers hold a 2–0 record on Christmas Day.
|
Year |
Opponent |
Result |
|---|---|---|
|
2016 |
Baltimore Ravens |
W, 31–27 |
|
2017 |
Houston Texans |
W, 34–6 |
Roethlisberger threw for 279 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions during the win over the Ravens. Running back Le’Veon Bell carried the ball 20 times for 122 yards and one touchdown. And, another blast from the past, Brown caught the ball 10 times for 96 yards and one touchdown.
Both Roethlisberger and Bell showed out for the Steelers in 2017, too. The quarterback threw for 226 yards and two touchdowns, while the running back carried the ball 14 times for 69 yards and one touchdown. Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster led the Steelers with six catches for 75 yards and one touchdown in the contest. Brown missed the game due to injury.
Steelers’ Christmas Day Heroes
As mentioned above, both Roethlisberger and Bell appeared as heroes for the Steelers in both previous Christmas Day games. Brown, too, is considered the hero of the 2016 game as he scored the final touchdown to seal the win.
Memorable Rivalries and Matchups
Rivalry games are often showcased during the Christmas Day matchups. The Steelers were a part of that narrative in 2016 when playing against the Ravens, but this year the Steelers and Ravens will be playing in different Christmas games. The Ravens will be playing the Texans after the Steelers–Chiefs game.
The Chiefs have appeared in multiple rivalry Christmas Day games against the Las Vegas Raiders in 2004 and ’23, and also against the Denver Broncos in 2016. Kansas City holds a 2–2 record on Christmas Day.
The Christmas Day games often hold playoff implications for teams as the games are played near the end of the regular season. Before the 18-week season, the Christmas Day games were sometimes the last games of the season for some teams. However, both the Steelers and Chiefs clinched playoff spots already. The Steelers will need to win in order to keep the top AFC North seed, especially if the Ravens beat the Texans.
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Paul Skenes was nothing short of dominant for the Pittsburgh Pirates en route to winning the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year.
But even in a season full of special performances from the first overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, one performance stood out above the rest for the Pirates. MLB.com picked the best performance for every team in the 2024 season and tabbed his performance against the Milwaukee Brewers on July 11 as Pittsburgh’s best. Skenes pitched 7 no-hit innings and struck out 11 batters while walking just one on 99 pitches in a 1-0 win over the eventual NL Central champions.
“Skenes had otherworldly expectations coming into 2024, but few could have expected him to dominate the way he did out of the gate, earning an All-Star nod after just 10 Major League starts,” Stumpf writes. “His 11th start made it clear that he was already one of the game’s best, striking out 11 over seven innings of no-hit ball. Skenes walked and hit a batter in the second, his lone blemishes as he would go on to retire the last 16 Brewers he faced. The Pirates would go on to win, 1-0, and Skenes was named the National League’s starting pitcher the next day.“
The only trouble Skenes had came in the second inning with two outs when he hit Brewers Jake Bauers and walked Garrett Mitchell. The Pirates ace escaped the jam by striking out Andruw Monasterio and Skenes sat down the next 15 batters he faced, including seven via strikeout, to end his outing.
Skenes’ outing against the Brewers marked the second time he exited a game without allowing a single hit. He also accomplished the feat on May 17 in the second start of his big league career when he pitched 6 shutout innings, struck out 11 and walked 1 batter against the Chicago Cubs to earn the first win of his career.
Make sure to visit Pirates OnSI for the latest news, updates, interviews and insight on the Pittsburgh Pirates
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