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Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine

 

Our Mission:

To provide and promote the highest level of care to women with high-risk pregnancies and to their families in the pursuit of academic excellence

Our Vision:

Providing and promoting the highest level of care… leading in the advancement of perinatal care… advancing new knowledge… leading in education… building a culture of professional satisfaction.

 

The Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine of the University of British Columbia includes 20 perinatologists providing consultative care at 4 sites – BC Women’s Hospital, Surrey Memorial Hospital, Royal Columbian Hospital and Victoria General Hospital.  In addition, new clinics have been added at St. Paul’s Hospital and will expand in the future.  In addition to providing direct patient care at these sites, Division members provide clinical support to maternity care providers throughout the province and into the Yukon Territory through telephone and telehealth consultations, and coordination of maternal transports.

Perinatologists in the Division provide care over the full range of fetal and maternal complications of pregnancy.  A significant focus is fetal diagnosis through ultrasound imaging and invasive testing.  Fetal therapy is offered for a wide variety of conditions, including fetal anemia/hydrops, urinary tract obstruction, pulmonary masses, fetal arrhythmias and twin-twin transfusion syndrome.  Maternal medical conditions either predating or arising during pregnancy are also managed in the Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic.

Members of the Division work in close collaboration with specialists in other disciplines including Medical Genetics, Obstetrical Medicine, Neonatology, Pediatric Surgery, Reproductive Mental Health and many others.  Care is provided in a collaborative model with the patient’s primary care provider.  The interdisciplinary clinic provides patients with the services of perinatal nurses, social workers, dieticians and psychologists.

In addition to the physician members of the Division, we are fortunate to have a very strong administrative support team.  Ms. Maureen Conlon, Director of MFM, coordinates not only all of the clinical work, but budgets, strategic planning and human resources within the Division.  She works closely with the Division Head to move the mandate of the Division forwards.  The administrative assistants support each clinician, as well as coordinating rounds, and organizing conferences.

The Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine is highly engaged in the educational mandate of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at all levels.  This includes leadership roles in the pre-clinical MD undergraduate program and significant contributions to the clinical undergraduate and postgraduate training in Ob/Gyn.  The 2 year Royal College accredited fellowship in Maternal Fetal Medicine is highly regarded and very competitive with 4 fellows currently in the program.  Importantly, members of the Division also participate in providing on-going education for practitioners as invited speakers and as members of national committees on obstetric practice.  Many of the members of the Division have been involved in writing national guidelines on obstetric topics.

Research activity within the division covers the spectrum from basic science to clinical research to population health and database analysis.  Research strengths include: investigation of maternal hypertensive disorders of pregnancy / placental dysfunction, and perinatal factors determining outcomes for babies born preterm.  Research collaborations span the research institutes on site as well as national and international networks.  Funding for research in the division currently totals over two million dollars and includes awards from the CIHR, Michael Smith Foundation, WHO, BCCH Telethon, Variety Clubs and many other sources.  There is a strong team of research support staff headed up by Ms Ariadna  Fernandez.

Administratively, the Division shows a strong presence at hospital, university, provincial, national and international levels.  Within BC Women’s Hospital, Division Members hold roles as Medical Director of Diagnostic Ambulatory Program, Antepartum and Postpartum Program, and Senior Medical Director of Ambulatory Care.  The new Perinatal Services of British Columbia program has recently appointed one of the Division Members as it Medical Director for perinatal care, and another MFM member sits on the steering committee of the Provincial Prenatal Screening Program.  Nationally, the Division includes the Chairs of the Examination Boards for both Maternal Fetal Medicine and for Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the chair of the Health Canada - Bureau of Reproductive Health, Maternal Health Study Group.  Three division members are currently members of policy committees of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada.  Another member is the current president of the International Society for the Study of Hypertension in Pregnancy, and Editor of the journal Hypertension in Pregnancy.

The Division has a strong focus on the well being of its members.  There are a number of the perinatologists who work on a part-time schedule to permit life balance, and the philosophy of the group is very much team based.  This is reflected both in our model of clinical practice and our non-clinical work.

Future priorities include strengthening the regional and provincial mandate of Maternal Fetal Medicine , business modeling for delivery of care, and continuing to train excellent perinatologists through our sub-specialty fellowship training program.  Clearly, the Division is committed to moving forward in all areas of academic medicine, including clinical care, research, education and administration.

 

June 2010