Long Island moms, officials urge public to get educated about C-sections before delivery

Falischa Moss had just a moment to make a life-or-death decision: have a cesarean section or risk her life and those of her two unborn daughters.

When she went to a hospital to have the twins in 2017, she was expecting to have a vaginal birth. But immediately before delivery, doctors recommended she have a C-section. While the children were born healthy, Moss developed complications from the surgery, which led to other operations.

“To be told the same day that you're in labor, that you have to have a cesarean birth, there's no way around it, there's nothing I can do,” said Moss, 45, of Brentwood. “You just have to do it and think quickly.”

She added: “There's no room for a conversation.”

On Tuesday, Moss joined health care professionals and county officials at a news conference urging awareness of overuse of the surgery that accounted for about one in three nationwide deliveries in 2021. The group, speaking at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge for  Cesarean Awareness Month, also encouraged the public to learn about the possibility of having a C-section well before delivery.

"Cesarean Awareness Month informs families about the risks and complications of a cesarean, including the situations when it is needed," said Vanessa Baird-Streeter, deputy county executive for Suffolk County.

Dr. Gregson Pigott, health commissioner for Suffolk, said that too often a C-section is the default option. “Sometimes it's something that physicians will jump to," especially for women who have had a prior C-section, he said. 

Moss’ C-section with her twin girls was her first. But her severe complications afterward led to more surgeries and more than a year in recovery. The experience halted her desire to expand her family and try for a son, said Moss, who has four daughters between 5 and 25.

As for others who are considering pregnancy, she encouraged them to not "be afraid," warning, however: "Be more aware. Ask questions.”

Across the globe, the rate of C-sections has grown from around 7% in 1990 to 21% in 2021, according to the World Health Organization. At roughly 34%, New York is among the top 15 states for C-section delivery rates in 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Dr. Clarel Antoine, an obstetrician-gynecologist who founded the nonprofit Rx Compassion, which raises awareness about C-sections, said often people who come to a hospita seeking a vaginal birth become uneasy when they're told they need to have a C-section.

Yesenia Garciaprieto was told she should have a C-section while delivering her first child. She said yes because she thought about the child's well-being.

But she wasn't prepared for the surgery's aftereffects, including not being able to hold her baby, breastfeed or move easily, said Garciaprieto, who lives in Bay Shore and has three children, 20, 14 and 8.

“We don’t have information,” Garciaprieto, 48, said through a Spanish-language interpreter. "We don’t know the consequences of anesthesia. How we end up recovering or if the baby will suffer any consequences."

She urged those expecting to get educated about C-sections, saying: "So, we're in the doctor's hands. We know that they may know best and so they may advise … a cesarean, but at least we're more informed." 

By Tiffany Cusaac-Smith

tiffany.cusaac-smith@newsday.com@T_Cusaac

Education: Howard University 

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith came to Newsday in 2023 after being a race and history reporter at USA TODAY, where she wrote enterprise and spot articles examining how the past shapes the present. Previously, she worked as the race and justice reporter at the USA TODAY Network of New York, covering issues such as criminal justice reform, housing, environmental justice, health care and politics. At The Journal News/lohud.com in Westchester County, she covered Yonkers, the state's third-largest city. She also worked at The Associated Press in Atlanta.

Honors and Awards: Criminal justice reporting fellowship with the National Press Foundation;  New York News Publishers Association award for distinguished investigative reporting;  Contributed reporting for Best of Gannett honor; Member of Table Stakes, a program funded by the Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund and managed by the American Press Institute to transform local news.