Making Mothers

Insufficient medical care in impoverished communities contributes to the shocking fact that the U.S. ranks 29th in the world in infant mortality. Filmmakers Ben Crosbie and Tessa Moran's Making Mothers visits the Family Health and Birth Center (FHBC) in Washington, D.C., which is devoted to providing gynecological, prenatal, birth, postpartum, and pediatric services to its primarily African American clients (many of whom are young, single, and on Medicare). The film focuses on Joan, a breastfeeding peer counselor (like many FHBC employees, Joan came there first as a patient), and Lisa, a nurse-midwife. Interviews with the pair are interspersed with scenes of them teaching classes, after which the camera records a young woman's labor with her first child at FHBC, which ends with a transfer to a hospital for the actual birth. This engaging snapshot of how one agency serves its community delivers a quiet message about reaching out to women, offering assistance without preaching or judgment. Effectively conveying the dedication of the staff and chronicling their successes, Making Mothers will be most useful for vocational guidance in nursing programs as well as for those considering careers in related fields. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (M. Puffer-Rothenberg)