Eugene R. Declercq, PhD
Professor, Community Health Sciences
Biography
Gene Declercq combines formal training in political science with almost twenty years of experience as a certified childbirth educator to examine policy and practice related to childbirth in the US and abroad. His recent work in examining maternal mortality and morbidity in the US has emphasized the importance of systems approaches to improving women’s health. This requires a focus on women’s health in the community as well as in clinical settings and not only during pregnancy, but throughout the lifecourse. He is part of the collaborative team that has completed three national studies and a 2018 statewide study of women’s experiences in childbirth entitled Listening to Mothers. He was a technical adviser to the film documentary, The Business of Being Born and a producer and presenter of “Birth by the Numbers,” a 20 minute video that examines outcomes associated with current US birth practices. With student collaborators, he developed and maintains the companion website, www.birthbythenumbers.org which provides up-to-date data on trends in childbirth practices and outcomes.
He was principal investigator on two NIH funded collaborative projects examining child and maternal outcomes associated with Assisted Reproductive Technologies (MOSART project) and is one of the founders of the Pregnancy to Early Life Longitudinal (PELL) data system that has linked vital statistics, hospital, and administrative data on more than 1,200,000 births in Massachusetts since 1998. He has also been active in a variety of public health projects in his hometown of Lawrence, Massachusetts. As an educator, he is a past president of the Association of Teachers of Maternal and Child Health and has been a recipient of the Norman Scotch Award for outstanding teaching at BUSPH. He is also a recipient of the Martha May Eliot Award from the American Public Health Association for service to maternal and child health and the Greg Alexander Award for research in maternal and child health epidemiology.
Other Positions
- Professor, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Education
- Florida State University, PhD
- Florida State University, MS
- University of Massachusetts Amherst, MBA
- University of Massachusetts Lowell, BS
Publications
- Published on 11/11/2024
Janevic T, Declercq E, Howell EA. Data have consequences-Centring equity in the maternal mortality surveillance debate. Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol. 2024 Nov 11. PMID: 39526541.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 10/1/2024
Declercq ER, Liu CL, Cabral HJ, Amutah-Onukagha N, Diop H, Mehta PK. Emergency Care Use During Pregnancy and Severe Maternal Morbidity. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 Oct 01; 7(10):e2439939. PMID: 39412800.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/17/2024
Diop H, Declercq ER, Liu CL, Cui X, Amutah-Onukagha N, Meadows AR, Cabral HJ. Leveraging a Longitudinally Linked Dataset to Assess Recurrence of Severe Maternal Morbidity. Womens Health Issues. 2024; 34(5):498-505. PMID: 39019744.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 12/5/2023
Bosak J, Messersmith L, Bryer C, Drainoni M, Goodman D, Adams M, Barry T, Flanagan C, Flanagan V, Wolff K, Declercq E. "They just looked at me like I was human": The experiences of parenting women and providers with substance use disorder treatment. J Subst Use Addict Treat. 2024 Feb; 157:209240. PMID: 38061633.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 11/14/2023
Declercq E, Thoma M. Measuring US Maternal Mortality. JAMA. 2023 Nov 14; 330(18):1731-1732. PMID: 37831458.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 11/3/2023
Bosak J, Drainoni ML, Bryer C, Goodman D, Messersmith L, Declercq E. 'It opened my eyes, my ears, and my heart': Codesigning a substance use disorder treatment programme. Health Expect. 2024 Feb; 27(1):e13908. PMID: 37920874.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 10/5/2023
Declercq ER, Cabral HJ, Liu CL, Amutah-Onukagha N, Meadows A, Cui X, Diop H. Prior Hospitalization, Severe Maternal Morbidity, and Pregnancy-Associated Deaths in Massachusetts From 2002 to 2019. Obstet Gynecol. 2023 Dec 01; 142(6):1423-1430. PMID: 37797329.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 10/1/2023
Admon L, Auty S, Declercq E, Wang N, Gordon S, Daw J, Kozhimannil K. In Reply. Obstet Gynecol. 2023 Oct 01; 142(4):991-992. PMID: 37734099.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 5/16/2023
Maimburg RD, Declercq ER, de Jonge A. Midwifery care is evidence-based but under increasing pressure. Sex Reprod Healthc. 2023 Jun; 36:100858. PMID: 37209445.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 5/12/2023
Meadows AR, Cabral H, Liu CL, Cui X, Amutah-Onukagha N, Diop H, Declercq ER. Preconception and perinatal hospitalizations as indicators of risk for severe maternal morbidity in primiparas. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM. 2023 Jul; 5(7):101014. PMID: 37178717.
Read at: PubMed
View 194 more publications: View full profile at BUMC