Yesterday “Married to Medicine” star Dr. Jacqueline “Jackie” Walters had social media set ablaze after controversial comments came back to bite her—hard! An old YouTube Live clip of a conversation Walters had has been making the rounds and it captures well-known OBGYN accusing pregnant Black women of being “dramatic” about their health concerns to get a day off work.
@omshanti2233 #greenscreenvideo #greenscreen #marriedtomedicine #drjackie #maternity #obgyn ? original sound – Om Shanti by Ashanti
“Sometimes, as African American women, we’re a bit more dramatic and that you go to the doctor and you complain, and you complain, and you complain, and you’re not taken seriously because you cry wolf the entire pregnancy,” Walters said in the clip. “We wanna also make sure that you’re being serious with your doctor and not playing the games so that could take you off work. Because then we see you 25 times in the pregnancy, it’s hard to believe there’s a true problem when there’s a true problem.”
Today Dr. Jackie took to Instagram with a statement about the old video.
#DrJackie with a statement over a video from a few years ago that has resurfaced. Thoughts? ? #Married2Med pic.twitter.com/06n5JAv2vO
— jay (@JaysRealityBlog) December 21, 2023
“Recently, a clip from a nearly 2 hour video was taken out of context to make it appear that I, somehow, take lightly, what I have advocated for concerning the devastating problem facing the Black maternal health crisis. It has been my life’s work to highlight and attempt to rectify the issues that devastatingly impact Black maternal mothers versus our counterparts.
As a physician, I educate my patients everyday to be their own best health advocate. As we continue to face medical mistreatment and gaslighting, my intention with the broader conversation was to ensure patients enter their pregnancies armed with information and tools to effectively communicate their needs with their doctors to ensure a positive outcome.
The reason I became an OBGYN is because growing up I saw such a lack of diversity amongst medical professionals, and was determined to be part of the change. Yesterday, today and tomorrow, I will continue to fight for the lives of Black mothers and babies.”
