Dr. Patricia Gabbe is a pediatrician at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. She is also a clinical professor of pediatrics and senior medical advisor to the Ohio State Health Plan. In 2010, Patricia founded a program called Moms2B, which is a community-based program that empowers pregnant women in low-income neighborhoods to have healthy pregnancies and babies.
“I created Moms2B to address the high infant death rates in Columbus, especially among African American families. We bring together people from academia, health care, government and private individuals who share a common goal of giving every baby a healthy start.” Moms2B meets weekly with pregnant and parenting women living in the Weinland Park neighborhood and the area surrounding Ohio State’s University Hospital East. They focus on nutrition, cooking, supporting each other and learning how to have a full-term pregnancy. “Everyone who attends a Moms2B session, even just to observe, is changed from the experience.”
Patricia says that she is inspired by the pregnant and parenting women living in poverty who attend their Moms2B program. “Their resilience, positive attitudes and strength in the face of such incredible obstacles inspires me to stay committed to our program and try to make a positive, lifelong difference for them.”
Patricia finds support in her family; husband Dr. Steven Gabbe who is chief executive officer of The Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center, sons Adam and Daniel, and daughters Erica and Amanda. “I am proud of my husband and our four children, and that we are a close-knit family. My husband inspires me by his incredible work ethics, his honesty, brilliance and love of sports and music. Patricia also says that her support system in Moms2B is strong beginning with her co-director Twinkle Schottke who she says “has the passion and the skills to make our vision of how pregnant women should be respected and treated become a reality. Our Moms2B team and our volunteers are a great source of strength for me. Their dedication and passion motivates me.”
Patricia says that her ultimate goal ties into her father’s. He was a farmer and a rancher whose goal was to make the world a little greener. “I am an urban ‘farmer’ of little babies. I want every baby to be born healthy, wanted and loved, and that’s my goal. Little baby buds blossoming into beautiful flowers.” Patricia also says that her story starts with the stories of their moms and their babies. “Every time one of our moms has a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby, I can see my life’s work making a difference.”
Moms2B’s goal is to expand their partnerships with the Columbus Neighborhood Health Center and Mount Carmel Health System to add more Moms2B program sites. “I want to reach every pregnant woman in Weinland Park and help her have a healthy pregnancy, a safe place for her baby to sleep and meet her personal goals for parenting and growth.”