Let's hear it for the girls

During the summer of 2007, St. Bernard appointed two physicians to lead the Obstetrics Department of the hospital. What made the announcement unique was that, for the first time in the institution’s long history, the new chairpersons of the department were both female.

While the doctors who preceded them offered both talent and expertise, the emergence of prominent female perspectives on OB/GYN care has proven equally beneficial to Englewood women, and to the ongoing progress of women’s services at St. Bernard.

“From a connection standpoint,” says Dr. Jamiere Smith, the current chairperson in Obstetrics, “many of us (female physicians) have undergone similar procedures ourselves. We can give the patient a first hand account of what to expect. Naturally, we can empathize with the whole process a little more.”

With 1200 infants born at St. Bernard annually, the hospital maintains its dedication to modern practices and technology, increasing the array of surgical instruments to promote newer, non-invasive and laparoscopic (abdonimal) procedures. Lactation specialists are on staff to assist new mothers, and ultrasound imaging is available 24 hours a day. During the tenure of Dr. Smith and Obstetrics vice-chair Dr. Catherine Wilbert (pictured), caesarean “c-section” deliveries have decreased ten percent and the department has shined under regulatory reviews.

Both physicians understand their roles as leaders in advocating for modern and progressive health care services for Englewood women.

“Women are their own worst enemies,” Dr. Smith warns. “They tend to take care of everyone else in the family except themselves. We need to change the practice of women who don’t come back the the doctor after they give birth.”