ABH Guest Post: Hannah Maher + Reproductive Justice for Patients Living with Sickle Cell Disease
A Critical Piece of Reproductive Justice: Improving the Lives and Care of Sickle Cell Warriors
Hannah Maher, MS2
2024-25 Public Health Advocacy Fellow
My name is Hannah Maher and I'm a reproductive justice advocate and second year medical student at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Campus. I'm also a 2024-2025 ABH Fellow, and was connected to Dr. Hannah Lichtsinn as my mentor. We were connected because of our shared interest in improving the care of patients living with sickle cell disease.
Prior to our introduction, I spent the summer in New York City at Columbia University researching fertility and sickle cell disease, nurturing my passion for research-driven advocacy. I believe that everyone has the right to have children, to not have children, and to raise those children in a safe and healthy environment. People with sickle cell disease are often faced with healthcare discrimination, chronic stressors such as racism and economic struggle, on top of the impacts of their disease on fertility and quality of life. Improving the lives and care of sickle cell warriors is a critical piece of the fight for reproductive justice. My summer research was geared toward increasing provider comfortability with managing fertility preservation in patients with sickle cell disease, and increasing funding for this important healthcare option.
Upon completion of my research program, I asked Dr. Lichtsinn how to be connected to the sickle cell community in Minnesota. Through her introduction, I was put in contact with sickle cell and stem cell transplant experts at the U of M, and with the incredible leader of the Sickle Cell Foundation of Minnesota, Rae Blaylark. Together, we wrote a $50,000 community grant proposal for a longitudinal project examining the fertility dreams and goals of patients living with sickle cell disease. The project is intended to inform healthcare providers and advocates of what patients with sickle cell disease want, and to create tailored educational materials based on these findings. I'm now awaiting the result of that grant application, as well as the result of an abstract submission from my summer research.
I'm so grateful to ABH for connecting me to local mentors and supporting me in my public health endeavors. I look forward to working with my partners in this work, both in Minnesota and New York, as I continue my training in medicine!