From Pregnancy to Pain: Closing Gaps for Kids

What happens when the people who need care most are also the least likely to receive it?In this episode, two innovators share how they are building solutions for populations that healthcare has consistently underserved, BIPOC mothers navigating the perinatal period, and children living with pain from complex medical conditions.Priya Iyer, Founder & CEO of Our Roots, describes how her virtual peer coaching platform is working to prevent and address perinatal anxiety and depression in BIPOC and low-income communities, where mood disorders occur at twice the rate of the general population, and where access barriers, language gaps, and a shortage of culturally concordant care mean that too many mothers never receive the help they need. With a 65% reduction in depression and anxiety scores observed among participants, and a reimbursement pathway through Medicaid, Our Roots is pioneering what virtual peer coaching in maternal mental health can look like at scale.Francesca Wuttke, CEO and Founder of nen, shares how her company has gamified cognitive behavioral therapy to help children with complex medical conditions understand and manage their pain. Children with cancer and other serious illnesses are placed on waitlists for pain psychology support that can stretch 12 to 18 months. nen is designed to fill that gap, with virtual companions, game-based CBT modules, and a clinical trial now expanding to potentially reach 80 to 90% of all children with cancer in Mexico.Episode Resources:CalAIM (California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal)Alameda Alliance for HealthDr Diana Ramos Surgeon General in CaliforniaFederally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs)Harper Cancer Research Institute - University of Notre DameUna Nueva Esperanza A.B.P.Secretaría de Salud | Gobierno de MexicoUNICEF EspañaConnect with Priya Iyer:Priya Iyer LinkedInOur Roots WebsiteOur Roots LinkedInConnect with Francesca Wuttke:Francesca Wuttke LinkedInnen Websitenen LinkedInConnect with us:KidsX WebsiteKidsX LinkedInChildren's Hospital L.A. WebsiteChildren's Hospital L.A. InstagramChildren's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn