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Jasmine L. Garland McKinney

PhD, LCMHCA (NC), NCC

About

Dr. Garland​ McK​inney

I am a Postdoctoral Associate in the Community, Equity, ​Data, and Information (CEDI) Lab at the University of ​Maryland at College Park. I am a wife, mother to two ​beautiful girls, sister, daughter, friend, researcher, educator, ​advocate, mental health clinician, perinatal mental health​ specialist, a​nd birth doula among other things.

Research Projects

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My research, clinical practice, and scholarly endeavors uplift Black women's perinatal experiences. Through these endeavors, I ​explore the connections between maternal health disparities and maternal mental health outcomes. As I further my research agenda, ​I intend to investigate the impacts of gendered racism on the relationship between Black mothers and daughters among other ​topics.

A Mother and Her Child

Training and Measurement

Black Maternal MEntal Health

I am currently developing a training program ​focused on Black maternal health and designed ​for doulas and community health workers. This ​training complements a maternal mental health ​tool that I have created for this demographic. ​The primary aims of these efforts are to decrease ​undiagnosed or misdiagnosed maternal mental ​health concerns and increase the number of ​culturally responsive providers with whom Black ​women are able to openly discuss mental health ​symptoms.

Delphi methodology

Study ​Information

The use of culturally responsive instruments in ​interprofessional settings (e.g., mental health, pediatrics, ​obstetrics and gynecology, social work, nursing) is critical to ​decreasing the frequency of perinatal race-related ​psychological stressors and minimizing their long-lasting ​impacts. Using the knowledge and expertise of informed ​mental health experts in the field, this study was an initial ​step toward developing a screening tool to quantitatively ​measure the mental health impact of Black women’s ​experiences of race-related psychological stressors during ​pregnancy and childbirth.

This study was supported by funding from the Association for Counselor Education ​and Supervision (ACES).

Cognitive Interviewing

Study Information

This study was one of the most important steps ​toward developing a screening tool that would ​capture Black women’s experiences of race-​related psychological stressors during pregnancy ​and childbirth. Specifically, this study uplifted the ​voices and experiences of pregnant and ​postpartum Black women themselves. As a means ​of data triangulation, items that were developed ​by experts during the Delphi study were discussed ​with these women during cognitive interviews.

Research study: Instrument validation

Study Information

This study represented the initial psychometric validation for ​the screening tool I created, The Prepartum Form for Evaluating ​Race-Related Psychological Stressors (PP-FERRPS)©. This initial ​validation study determined that the 30-item, five-subscale ​PP-FERRPS© demonstrates initial reliability, convergent, and ​concurrent validity. Because this instrument marks the first to ​identify and define perinatal race-related psychological ​stressors for Black women, follow-up validation testing will need ​to be conducted; however, the development of the PP-​FERRPS© is a significant step toward birth equity, reproductive ​justice, and culturally responsive maternal mental health ​screenings for Black women.


This study was supported by funding from the Southern Association for ​Counselor Education and Supervision (SACES).

Professional Accomplishments and Affiliations

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I am a past recipient of the Clinical Mental ​Health Minority Fellowship. I was a masters-​level fellow from 2019 - 2020.

I was the first Birth Equity Research Scholar ​to receive a pre to postdoctoral fellowship ​opportunity.

Formerly the National Birth Equity Collaborative*

I was part of the inaugural cohort for the ​Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship. I was a ​doctoral-level fellow from 2020 - 2022.

I was named People’s Choice Award winner ​for the TMT Competition at the University of ​North Carolina at Greensboro in 2022.

I received the Research and Best Practice ​grant from SACES in 2022.

Contact Details

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jgm

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Phd, lcmhca, ncc

Thank you for visiting ​my website. I look ​forward to connecting ​with you soon!

"I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a ​catcher's mitt on both hands - you need to be able to ​throw something back."


Maya Angelou