The Maternal Child Health Equity & Safety (MatCHES) Lab, led by Dr. Zoua Vang, supports innovative research to improve maternal child health locally and globally. Current research supported by the Lab includes projects on:
- The impact of a co-designed, trauma-informed, community health worker intervention (Mat-CHW) on access to health care services and maternal, infant and child health outcomes among refugees in Wisconsin.
- The effects of childbirth evacuation on perinatal depression and infant growth/development among the Inuit in Nunavik.
- The cross-cultural adaptation and validation of culturally appropriate perinatal depression screening tools.
- Racism and settler colonialism as barriers to Indigenous women’s access to culturally safe healthcare.
Researchers in the Lab investigate these issues using quantitative and qualitative methodologies and participatory research approaches.
The overall goal of the MatCHES Lab is to work together with mothers, their families, and communities to improve maternal health care services and maternal-child health outcomes.
Research
The MatCHES Lab currently supports four research initiatives.
Resources
We have compiled resources for mothers and families in the United States and Canada.
People
Meet our team.
Director
Zoua M. Vang, PhD
Position title: Director, MatCHES Lab
Pronouns: she/her/hers,
Email:
zvang8
Phone: 608-890-0221
Address:
4145 Nancy Nicholas Hall,
1300 Linden Drive,
Madison, WI 53706
Dr. Vang is the founding director of the Maternal Child Health Equity & Safety (MatCHES) Lab. She is the Meta Schroeder Beckner Outreach Professor and holds a joint appointment as a Professor of Civil Society…
Trainees
Madison Kurth
Position title: MD Student in the School of Medicine and Public Health; MatCHES Research Scholar
Email:
mkurth2
Amy Liang
Position title: BS Student in the College of Letters & Science; Wisconsin Idea Fellow (WIF) and MatCHES Scholar
Email:
aliang28
SeiJin Na
Position title: PhD Student in Civil Society & Community Research; Project Assistant
Email:
seijin.na
Adejumoke Olopade
Position title: PhD Student in Civil Society & Community Research; MatCHES Research Scholar
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Email:
aolopade
Destiny Onyeise
Position title: PhD Student in Population Health Sciences; MatCHES Research Scholar
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Email:
onyeise
Nilvio Alexander Punguil Bravo
Position title: PhD Student in Civil Society & Community Research; Project Assistant
Pronouns: he/him/his/él/pay
Email:
punguilbravo
Carla Rattunde
Position title: PhD Student in Civil Society & Community Research; MatCHES Research Scholar
Pronouns: they/them/theirs
Email:
crattunde
Maiyia Vang
Position title: MPH Student in Public Health; APEX Intern & MatCHES Research Scholar
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Email:
mvang59
Yingying Zheng
Position title: PhD Student in Population Health Sciences; Project Assistant
Email:
zheng276
Affiliates
Michaela Bunakova
Position title: PhD Candidate in Sociology, McGill University; Research Assistant
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Mozghan Kohzadi
Position title: Project Manager and Community Research Liaison/Data Coordinator
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Amy Meinen
Position title: Outreach and Research Program Manager
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Email:
ameinen
Frania Mendoza Lua
Position title: Health Disparities Research Scholars (HDRS) Postdoctoral Fellow
Email:
flua
