Physical, psychological, social and economic health all part of maternal well-being
TORONTO, October 11, 2007 -- York University’s 11th annual conference on motherhood, hosted by the Association for Research on Mothering, will focus on something mothers too often ignore – their own health and well-being.
“Mothers around the world are given the responsibility of caring for their families’ health, but while they are taking care of everyone else, their own health often takes a hit,” says Women’s Studies Professor Andrea O’Reilly. “We’re going to be looking at why mothers often end up physically and mentally drained and what types of support they need.”
The Maternal Health and Well-Being Conference, which will be held in downtown Toronto from Oct. 17 to 20, will include a wide range of topics, including work-family balance, postpartum depression, “mother blame”, reproductive rights and racism. A common thread through many of the presentations is health, broadly defined, says O’Reilly, director of the Association for Research on Mothering. The association was formed after the first conference on motherhood was held more than a decade ago and now has more than 600 members internationally.
“Health and well-being doesn’t mean just an absence of disease,” says O’Reilly. “It has to include promoting well-being by reducing stress, ensuring that women and children are not living in poverty, and that they have the housing they need. If people were able to live in decent housing and had a proper diet, a lot of the illnesses that are being treated in our emergency rooms would not end up there.”
Included in the program is an embedded conference for and about young mothers, and the special issues they face, such as stigma, as well as the need for strategies to address the needs of low-income single mothers.
WHAT: Maternal Health and Well-being Conference
WHEN: Wed. Oct. 17 to Sat. Oct. 20
WHERE: The Courtyard Marriott Hotel, Downtown Toronto (475 Yonge St. at Carlton)
WEBSITE: Maternal Health and Well-Being Conference program
Highlights of the conference:
- Barbara Hall, Chief Commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission and former mayor of Toronto about using human rights legislation to protect mothers against discrimination in housing, employment and services, and the commission’s ability to push societal change on issues such as lack of adequate affordable housing for low-income mothers. (Sat. Oct. 20)
- Louise Moody (Humewood House) and Julie Maher (Young Parents No Fixed Address) about the creation of a new Toronto project, “1900 Sheppard,” to provide housing for young mothers with the services they need on-site. The project is the result of the inquest into the death of Baby Jordan a decade ago, while his mother was living in a shelter. It will serve as a model for future residences and the subject of a York University study. (Sat. Oct. 20)
- A session on work/family balance, including a presentation on the costs and causes of stress, a study of the health and career sacrifices that academics make to be mothers, and legislation to accommodate breastfeeding at work. (Thurs. Oct. 18)
- Mary Kay Blakely, journalism professor and author of Wake Me When It’s Over (1989) and American Mom (1994), the first and frankest of the mommy memoirs. (Wed. Oct. 17 evening)
- Mothering and economic well-being panel, including the results of a study of 24 single mothers identified as “high-risk” and barriers to effective mothering, including inadequate income. (Fri. Oct. 19)
- A keynote panel on issues and action for maternal health and well-being, including; childbirth reform that has excluded many immigrant midwives of colour and postpartum depression around the world. (Fri. Oct. 19)
York University is the leading interdisciplinary research and teaching university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto, Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 50,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 200,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 11 faculties and 24 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges. York University is an autonomous, not-for-profit corporation.
-30-
Media contact:
Janice Walls, Media Relations, York University, 416 736 2100 x22101 / wallsj@yorku.ca
