Clancy McCarty, RN, MSN, CNM
Clancy is spent over a decade as a producer documenting the stories of pregnancy and childbirth for the non-profit Every Mother Counts, where she navigated health systems across the US and globally, creating connections with caregivers and mothers. Her 6-part documentary series Giving Birth in America (CNN) highlights some of the biggest barriers to obtaining quality maternal health care in the United States while also highlighting the solutions to improving birth outcomes for women. In addition, she worked alongside incredible community-led maternal health organizations advocating for improved maternal healthcare in Tanzania, Guatemala, Haiti, Malawi, Uganda, Nepal, India, Indonesia, and Bangladesh. She became involved in maternal health after co-producing EMC founder Christy Turlington Burns' debut documentary film, NO WOMAN, NO CRY (OWN) about global maternal mortality and morbidity. Her work documenting the stories of maternal health caregivers and pregnant women inspired her to pursue her own career as a nurse-midwife. Clancy graduated from Frontier Nursing University’s Master of Science Nursing program and is now a Certified Nurse-Midwife. Clancy gave birth at home to her beautiful daughter in 2021, surrounded by her husband, midwife mentors, and her doula, Willie.
Willie Larson, RN, MSN, Student Nurse-Midwife
After witnessing her mother birth her sister at home, Willie knew that one day she would work within the childbirth community. She spent years working as a luxury interior designer, before diving into birth work by becoming a doula. As a doula, Willie spent time helping families throughout Los Angeles and volunteered her time supporting girls in the foster care system. This work gave her first hand experience of the disparities in the maternal health system in this country and the need for more easily accessible and inclusive perinatal education. She become a childbirth educator at LOOM, a hub for pregnancy and parenting and went on to receive her Master’s of Science in Nursing from UCLA. As a high-risk Labor and Delivery nurse at a busy Downtown L.A. hospital, Willie worked closely with Certified Nurse-Midwives and Obstetricians to provide quality care to a diverse population. She is currently enrolled at Frontier Nursing University’s Master’s degree program to become a Certified Nurse-Midwife and is expected to graduate early 2025. She gave birth at home to her first daughter with two midwives, her husband, sister, and Clancy as her doula by her side.