My story is not by chance, but by design. I, like so many New Yorkers, have a story written across five boroughs. I was born in Manhattan, raised in the Bronx, and built my career in Brooklyn.
Now, as I serve the mothers of Far Rockaway, I bring with me 20+ years of experience as an obstetrician-gynecologist and a lifetime of understanding the complexity and beauty of this city’s women and families. I also bring a deeply personal experience: despite my clinical training and access to care, I too experienced increased morbidity during my own pregnancy.
I’ve stood in both roles—provider and patient—and I understand, more than ever, how fragile and sacred the journey to motherhood can be. That experience deepened my empathy and sharpened my resolve to ensure that no woman should face preventable harm during childbirth, especially not because of where she lives or the resources she lacks.
This Mother’s Day, I’m not only reflecting on my personal journey but also on the urgent need to improve maternal health outcomes for women across the Rockaway Peninsula.
At Episcopal Health Services, we are confronting this challenge head-on. We are proud to soon open our new state-of-the-art Labor, Delivery, Recovery, and Postpartum (LDRP) Unit at St. John’s Episcopal Hospital—bringing compassionate, high-quality, family-centered maternity care to a region that has long needed more.
Our investment in this LDRP unit is about more than infrastructure. It’s about changing outcomes. Our approach integrates trauma-informed care, doula support, mental health services, and culturally responsive models rooted in dignity and respect. We are building systems that listen to women, honor their voices, and recognize the social determinants that affect their health.
Far Rockaway deserves nothing less than excellence. And our mothers—who are the foundation of families and communities—deserve care that centers their safety, their agency, and their humanity. My commitment, both professional and personal, is to fight for that every day. As Pope John Paul II once said, “The future of humanity passes by way of the family.” By caring for our mothers, we strengthen our communities—and build a healthier, more just future for us all.
Dr. Jacqueline Marecheau, MD, FACOG, is chair of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Episcopal Health Services, where she leads strategic, clinical, and operational initiatives to improve women’s health and maternal equity across the system. A board-certified OB-GYN with over 20 years of experience, Dr. Marecheau previously served as director of quality and patient safety in women’s health at EHS and held faculty positions at Long Island College Hospital and NYU Langone-Brooklyn. She earned her medical degree from SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn and is a graduate of the Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education. Dr. Marecheau is also a mentor, educator, and researcher dedicated to advancing the next generation of women’s health professionals.
