On Trust and Grace: Photographer Maggie Shannon on How to Document Vulnerable Patients and Dedicated Medical Professionals
By Kimberly J. Soenen | March 16, 2024
Today, in THE FINE PRINT, a conversation with photographer Maggie Shannon.
On Thursday, March 14, the Vice President of the United States of America visited a Planned Parenthood medical care clinic near the city line between St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, marking the first time a president or vice president has toured a facility that provides Sexual and Reproductive medical care to citizens and residents of the country.
It was 2022 when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and 2024 is starting amid a wave of new court cases and laws restricting access to medical care further in the United States.
People in the United States die frequently from complications related to pregnancy, and giving birth each year. The high maternal death rate in the United States makes it an outlier among nations with wealth and healthcare innovation resources. Federal data, and private practice data, shows that maternal mortality has surged in recent years, and medical associations have expressed that the problem is getting worse in the wake of medical care bans being passed across the country.
“Stop talking and just listen; show empathy and kindness; put your ego aside and be grateful.”
—Maggie Shannon
Shannon’s recent photo essay feature in the New Yorker has garnered significant attention for putting a lens on an extremely private space. Originally, Shannon set out to document the opening of an abortion clinic in Post-Roe America, but the project evolved into something more emotionally resonant for her. Following the Dobbs decision in 2022, and throughout 2023, she witnessed the bonds formed between the staff and patients that transcended the traditional healthcare dynamic at Partners in Abortion Care, a Maryland clinic specializing in later-stage abortion.
By chronicling the clinic’s everyday workings, her focus expanded beyond the medical realm to something more, unveiling an unconventional love story that surpasses the political landscape.
Through these photographs, Shannon shares the untold stories of individuals navigating a complex journey with grace and resilience. Her project illuminates the unwavering spirit of people dedicated to preserving Sexual and Reproductive Health rights, while fostering a deeper understanding of the love that sustains and strengthens communities in challenging times.
“As access to abortion diminished or even became impossible in some states, this clinic flourished and acted as a reminder of what healthcare could be. The compassion exchanged between patients and medical professionals was a moving testament to their resilience and empathy. Despite Supreme Court cases and protests like the March for Life happening outside the walls of the clinic, inside, intimate connections were forged between people coming together to overcome personal, emotional, and physical hurdles: staff with patients, staff with staff, and patients with patients.”
-Maggie Shannon
Soenen: Did you have any fears or trepidation going into this project personally or professionally and how did you surmount those considerations?
MS: To be honest, the only fears I had going into this project were not being able to do the access I was receiving justice. The staff at the clinic and the patients were so open with me, I felt a huge responsibility to portray them with respect and care, to honor the stories they were sharing with me. I put a lot of pressure on myself to make photos that matched the incredible love and intimacy I was witnessing. I felt consumed by this project while I was photographing it. Thankfully, I worked on this story in one-two week spurts so I could rest, spend time reflecting and talking with my therapist afterwards.
Soenen: Did you witness anything or have any conversations with physicians that surprised you or changed your view of medical care?
MS: Yes, everything!
I wish every pregnant-capable person could spend time at Partners. I learned so much just by being a fly on the wall and listening to what the nurses and doctors were sharing with thier patients.
There’s so much information that is still hidden from us about our bodies. I feel grateful for the staff at the clinic for expanding my knowledge on this. Sadly, I can’t think of anything specific, but I feel like every day I learned something new and went to bed wide-eyed about what my body is capable of.
One thing I can speak to specifically is how Partners changed my view of what medical care could look like in the United States. The staff showed such empathy to patients, spending time with them even if it was just sitting silently together in the recovery room, holding someone’s hand during a procedure or listening attentively to someone’s fears. I wish all medical practices could show this type of compassion.
I had a gynecologist that didn’t make eye contact with me during my entire appointment so this type of care feels needed and like it could be a start to fix a lot of the problems we have in our medical system.
Soenen: Why did people trust you and what did patients and physicians coach you on while you were in their space with your camera?
MS: For my first day at the clinic, the founders and I decided that I wouldn’t take any photos. I just listened, watched everything and everyone to see what the flow was like, and to get the staff used to me being in their space. It was hard to see potential photographs that I missed but I think doing this might have helped me build trust with the staff. I also think just being myself, being curious, kind and respectful goes a long way with people. I was with them in the morning when the clinic opened to when they closed, sometimes long days. We ate lunch, took coffee breaks, walked to the 7-11 to get snacks together. After a while it felt like I was accepted into their circle which is something I really treasure.
Soenen: Outside of the need for Sexual and Reproductive Health medical care access, how did this photographic journey and long term project shape your view of women, coupledom, birth control, sex and the debate about abortion access?
MS: I’ve always been intensely Pro-choice, which is why I pitched this story in the first place. It’s been enraging seeing so many of our rights being stripped away. Working on this project showed me the complexities of Reproductive Health, that it’s not just black and white, which I think is one of the things that makes this story so powerful.
Being in the procedure room on Day Three is existing in a space full of grief and pain but also relief and joy. I had a lot of conversations with my therapist about this: I didn’t want to feel sad about witnessing an abortion, I wanted to feel empowered and feeling this sadness made me scared that I was siding with the Anti-abortion crowd. But I think holding these conflicting things is what makes us so beautifully human and why these patient’s stories are so important to share.
The anti-abortion movement misses these complexities…and what a loss that is! Our humanity is messy and raw and wonderful…none of it is black and white.
“Here, care was paramount. I witnessed love for patients, love among staff, love despite grieving, love for bodily autonomy, and love beyond polarized political sides. The usual power dynamics of the medical office were upended and instead patience, listening, and respect were centralized.”
—Maggie Shannon
Soenen: What, in your opinion, is the most misunderstood aspect of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare from the perspective of the physicians and patients?
MS: That Planned Parenthood is the only abortion clinic in the United States! Private clinics do so much and are often forgotten.
Soenen: If you were giving advice to less experienced journalists, what are one to three tips you might offer regarding sensitive health reportage of any kind?
MS: Stop talking and just listen; show empathy and kindness; put your ego aside and be grateful.
Soenen: You mentioned the photographs not taken. Years ago, Daylight published a book with that exact name. What is the one photograph you wanted to take but chose not to, and why?
MS: Phew, this is hard.
While working on this story there were moments where I was present for a lot of pain. Navigating this was a very new experience for me and I feel so lucky I worked with two great editors at the New Yorker—Joanna Milter and Stacey Pitman— who trusted my instincts.
I had to think hard about what kind of story I was telling here, and when it was better for the person I was with to put down the camera and try to offer a safe, comforting presence instead of being a documentarian. I don’t think I’m the type of photographer to focus on sensational moments and I realized this while working on this story. The human connection is more important to me and that’s why I’m doing this type of work.
Soenen: What are the health stories photojournalists should be capturing now about women as patients? Are there more topics out there that you and our colleagues should be pursuing with the same grace and sensitivity to educate people?
MS: Sadly, during this election year there are so many stories to tell…which is terrifying because our basic rights are under attack. Normalizing abortion care as a medical procedure is a huge thing and I’m sure there are so many other stories out there.
I really love the work Jackie Molloy did on IVF. Anything we can do to pull back the curtain and show how normal our bodies are!
Soenen: What is your wish-list health story if budget was not a consideration?
MS: It’s a dream to travel across the world and see what maternal healthcare looks like everywhere.
Soenen: Are you optimistic about health, healthcare and Public Health? And if so, why, or why not?
MS: I am optimistic after working with certain people in healthcare and seeing the hard work they’re doing to create change, but it’s not easy and burnout is so real, we need to uplift them! I think we need more stories celebrating the folks who are doing it right until it becomes the norm.
Soenen: Up for a few questions about you when your camera is down?
MS: Fun. Absolutely.
Soenen: Leica, Canon, Sony, Hasselblad, Nikon, or…?
MS: Aw man, my first camera was my dad’s old Nikon, 2nd was a Hasselblad but now I shoot mostly Canon. Can I pick all 3?
Soenen: Band du jour?
MS: Gotta be a good partner and plug my husband Roy Werner who just had an album come out, Imagine My Surprise on Moon Glyph.
Soenen: Favorite place to eat in between assignments?
MS: If I’m in LA, I love going to Bub and Grandma’s for a sandwich and a coffee before or after a shoot. Cava kept me fed and healthy while working on the New Yorker piece. I’ve been known to stop for a Taco Bell Crunchwrap after a late shoot!
Soenen: AI or Authorship?
MS: Authorship.
Soenen: Film or Digital?
MS: Digital, film is too expensive.
Soenen: Beyoncé Country or Kim Gordon?
MS: What about a collaboration?!
Soenen: View one frame vs. watch a three-hour long film?
MS: Three-hour film.
Soenen: Female photojournalist mentors or influences?
MS: I’m not sure if I’ve ever had a mentor, per se, but my peers have all been incredible and so supportive. To name just a few:
Greta Rybus, Stella Kalinina, Alyson Aliano, and Virginia Wilcox.
Soenen: If you had a ten page full bleed feature in full color in print: what would it be now, and why?
MS: A story that involves celebrating pregnant capable bodies, explores true stories and cuts through the Disney-fication of birth and motherhood.
Soenen: Best advice you have ever received?
MS: “Don’t be an asshole.”
Soenen: Thank you for your work, Maggie.
SM: Thank you for asking such thoughtful questions.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES >
March 19, 2024> New Research Report Documents How Louisiana’s Abortion Bans Harm Patients and Clinicians | Fact-finding report by the Center and its partners finds that criminalizing abortion care violates medical ethics, public health standards, and human rights—and undermines maternal health.
FACTS and SCIENCE
Facts are essential, especially when discussing the health of women, pregnant persons, and the American public. The fact is, abortion is an essential component of medical care.
BEHAVIORAL AND SEXUAL HEALTH
Contraception Education and Health Literacy
READ
WATCH
Jackson | Directed by Maisie Crow
A Rapist in Your Path | AKA “The Rapist is You”
GLOBAL HARM IMPACT
Global impacts of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and abortion regression in the United States
MEDICAL POLICY AND BEST PRACTICE
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) with over 57,000 members, maintains the highest standards of clinical practice and continuing education for the nation’s women’s health physicians. Abortion care is included in medical training, clinical practice, and continuing medical education.
ACOG is committed to advancing education and training for ob-gyn residents through its Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology, which includes abortion as one of the educational objectives within the Core Curriculum in Obstetrics and Gynecology, 10th Edition that helps define competency in graduate medical education.
Abortion is also included in the 2015 Bulletin for the Oral Examination for Basic Certification in Obstetrics and Gynecology’s Gynecology Case List for oral board examinations offered and conducted by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
ACOG’s Guidelines for Women’s Health Care, A Resource Manual, 4th Edition, encompassing the full spectrum of clinical and management issues relating to women’s health care, lists abortion among the array of services that make up Gynecologic Care.
ACOG has issued several evidence-based clinical practice guidelines and official statements on abortion.
ACOG’s Statement of Policy
Induced abortion is an essential component of women’s health care. Like all medical matters, decisions regarding abortion should be made by patients in consultation with their health care providers and without undue interference by outside parties. Like all patients, women obtaining abortion are entitled to privacy, dignity, respect, and support.
Many factors influence or necessitate a woman’s decision to have an abortion. They include, but are not limited to, contraceptive failure, barriers to contraceptive use and access, rape, incest, intimate partner violence, fetal anomalies, illness during pregnancy, and exposure to teratogenic medications.
Pregnancy complications, including placental abruption, bleeding from placenta previa, preeclampsia or eclampsia, and cardiac or renal conditions, may be so severe that abortion is the only measure to preserve a woman’s health or save her life.
Where abortion is illegal or highly restricted, women resort to unsafe means to end unwanted pregnancies, including self-inflicted abdominal and bodily trauma, ingestion of dangerous chemicals, self-medication with a variety of drugs, and reliance on unqualified abortion providers.
Today, approximately 21 million women around the world obtain unsafe, illegal abortions each year, and complications from these unsafe procedures account for approximately 13% of all maternal deaths, nearly 50,000 annually.
Sound health policy is best based on scientific fact and evidence-based medicine. The best health care is provided free of political interference in the patient-physician relationship.
Personal decision-making related to medical care by women and their doctors should not be replaced by political ideology.