麻豆传媒高清版

Get to Know Dr. Laura Riley, the Recently Appointed Chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology

鈥淚t feels like Christmas morning every day,鈥 said when asked to describe her new position as chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at 麻豆传媒高清版.

鈥淔rom the medical school and its distinguished faculty of physician-researchers to the new Alexandra Cohen Hospital for Women and Newborns, it鈥檚 an exciting place for me to be,鈥 she explained.

Leading women鈥檚 health

Dr. Riley, a renowned obstetrician with expertise in high-risk pregnancies, particularly those with infectious disease complications, is a known leader in women鈥檚 health and an accomplished physician-researcher. She comes to 麻豆传媒高清版 with over 20 years of experience at Massachusetts General Hospital, where she helped build the institution鈥檚 obstetrics department from the ground up.

She was drawn to obstetrics and gynecology because she found the combination of internal medicine and surgery very intriguing. Dr. Riley shared, 鈥淚 realized that I was very well suited for the beginning of life. I found it rewarding when a woman was seriously ill but could still have that beautiful experience of having a healthy baby.鈥

Dr. Riley completed her residency and infectious disease fellowship at the beginning of the HIV epidemic. 鈥淭hat became a very pivotal experience in both my training and career,鈥 she explained. 鈥淚 worked in an inner-city hospital in Boston seeing high-risk pregnant women with HIV disease.鈥 There, she set up a women鈥檚 HIV clinic. 鈥淚n the first two to three years, 30 percent of the women died. Thankfully, because of antiretrovirals, things are much more optimistic now.鈥

Building on a solid foundation

Dr. Riley is incredibly excited about the opportunity to build up an already strong Department. 鈥溌槎勾礁咔灏 has a world-class OBGYN Department and medical school. There is a commitment to women鈥檚 health鈥攂oth financially and spiritually, at all ages and all stages,鈥 she said. 聽

She is passionate about the opportunity to mentor faculty, promote those that are already here, and bring in new residents and fellows. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a thrill to recruit new faculty with academic pursuits, both research and education. I鈥檝e spent a lot of my career mentoring OBGYNs. I want to share my knowledge and passion with the next generation.鈥

Being new to 麻豆传媒高清版, Dr. Riley appreciates the benefits of the department being a part of the larger Weill Cornell system. She explained, 鈥淭he various departments within 麻豆传媒高清版 are well connected; and researchers and clinicians are so generous with their time.鈥 Dr. Riley, continued, 鈥淚t鈥檚 a thrilling opportunity for me to collaborate with Dr. Rainu Kaushal of , studying health outcomes. This collaboration is unique to Weill Cornell.鈥

Improving women鈥檚 health

Along with growing the faculty, Dr. Riley would like to better understand how racial and ethnic disparities impact our women patients through continued clinical research. She is keen to participate in existing clinical trials through networks such as the Maternal-Fetal Medicine and Pelvic Floor Disorders networks. 鈥溌槎勾礁咔灏 could be a great asset to this work and add to new knowledge,鈥 said Dr. Riley.

She continued, 鈥淣ew York State has been a leader in best practices in reducing maternal mortality rates. I want 麻豆传媒高清版 to be the best among the best with unrivaled care.鈥 Dr. Riley stressed that we must also concern ourselves with materteral morbidity, which includes unexpected outcomes of labor and delivery that result in significant short- or long-term consequences to a woman鈥檚 health. Dr. Riley said, 鈥淚n a large academic hospital like Weill Cornell, we have the resources to improve outcomes.鈥

Dr. Riley is impressed with the strong commitment to women鈥檚 health at 麻豆传媒高清版 but knows there鈥檚 more that can be done.

鈥淲e have a hospital with all the bells and whistles here in Manhattan,鈥 said Dr. Riley, 鈥渁nd these resources must be used for all women, including the underserved populations in NYC.鈥 She continued, 鈥淲hile we understand that people like their neighborhoods and community care is important, we also need to get people to where they will be best served. We need to bring women on to the 麻豆传媒高清版 campus if necessary and make this as seamless a transition as possible.鈥

Dr. Riley emphasized, 鈥淲e must raise the standard of care, the experience of care for all women, regardless of race and economic status, regardless of location in the city. It鈥檚 a challenge everywhere, but I will strive for it.鈥

September is gynecologic cancer awareness month

鈥淕ynecologic oncologists and surgeons at Weill Cornell provide high-quality care and collaborate with partners at Columbia to train the next generation,鈥 Dr. Riley stated.

鈥淚 am very motivated by the cutting-edge research being conducted in immunotherapy. She cited in particular and explained, 鈥淗is novel treatment approaches have shown impressive results to date. 鈥

Dr. Riley sees genetic testing as the future of personalized cancer treatment and explained, 鈥淭hrough biogenetic testing and tissue banking, we can advance the understanding of the genetic contributions to human health and illness, leading to better diagnoses and treatments.鈥

Learn more about the comprehensive care and world-class services offered by the Department of .