Libertad Kotlyarov Montoya

Nearly a decade ago, I decided to pursue a career in obstetrics because I was witnessing many friends feel disempowered in their experiences with health care and specifically, with their birth experiences. I wanted to be a frontline clinician to help disrupt racial, class, and gender inequities in women's health. At the time, I viewed being a bedside nurse as a stepping stone to midwifery or medical school. When I began working, however, it became apparent to me that bedside nurses spend the most direct time with the patients and can have a powerful impact on health practices and outcomes. Now, with an MS in Nursing Education, I am able to not only provide day-to-day bedside care to my patients, but I also lead various education efforts within my hospital and at other hospitals and universities throughout DC and Maryland. I came to the DC area from Peru as a child with my mother, but that was actually my second move — I was born in and defected from the Soviet Union as an infant. I have spent most of my life being personally, academically, and/or professionally aware of these inequities and how they intersect, and am committed to working towards creating a language and action of empowerment that is accessible and relevant.