The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health has a long-standing history of excellence and innovation in clinical care for women, top-notch education for the physicians of the future, and cutting-edge basic science, clinical, and translational research. Building and expanding on that foundation is the story of the last six years, and what a story it is!

Recruiting and retaining the very best faculty is the bedrock of our accomplishments, and is at the heart of our continual transformation. By combining twenty outstanding new faculty members with the core faculty already in place, we have exponentially increased our ability to provide world-class care in all areas of Ob-Gyn. Our enhanced local, statewide, and national prominence is a byproduct of this committed effort.

Building an integrated departmental governance structure, with six steering committees populated by individuals from all divisions, has allowed us to function in a highly effective manner. This restructuring has established a road map for accomplishing our shared goals by combining diverse perspectives and disciplines with renewed energy and commitment

Establishing our departmental Quality Improvement Review Committee (QIRC) has resulted in effective self-reflection in all aspects of the clinical care we provide. Enhancing best practice and evidence-based medicine in both inpatient and ambulatory settings is the singular goal of this program, and represents the core of who we are.

Our Department is committed to all women. Through new outreach, education, communications, and development programs, we are actively working to fulfill our local, statewide, and global responsibility to improve women’s health. From providing the absolute best in cancer care and reproductive health options, to realizing the goal of healthy babies and families, we work to ensure that all women have what they need to live happier and healthier lives.

Laurel W. Rice, MD
Chair, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Ben Miller Peckham, MD, PhD Endowed Professor

Organized into five divisions—General Obstetrics and Gynecology, Gynecologic Oncology, Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Gynecology and Urogynecology, and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility—our clinical programs provide expert, patient-centered care to women of all ages, from adolescence through the childbearing and menopausal years. We provide comprehensive care to a large and diverse patient population, with a full range of clinical programs and services.

Using strategic marketing and demographics, we have optimized our clinical services and developed a geographic footprint in the Madison area and beyond that allows each of our patients to see the provider she chooses, at the location she chooses. Since 2007, we have enhanced our clinical repertoire to include Generations Fertility Care, the Women’s Pelvic Wellness Program in collaboration with UW Urology, Colorectal Surgery, and Physical Therapy, and the Women’s Integrative Sexual Health Program (WISH). We have added new facilities for our Center for Perinatal Care and Resident Continuity Clinic, and three new general Ob-Gyn clinics in partnership with Meriter Medical Group. We have standardized resources across locations, upgraded our state-of-the-art gynecologic equipment, and continue to review and update our services to align with the ever-changing national healthcare climate and the needs of our patient populations.

Recently, our clinical outreach sites have expanded to include gynecologic oncology care at Aspirus, Meriter, and Dean, as well as maternal-fetal medicine and reproductive endocrinology and infertility with Marshfield Clinic. We continue to explore new Ob-Gyn clinical collaborations with existing UW Health partners Watertown Regional Medical Center (medical directorship in general obstetrics and gynecology) and Swedish American (gynecologic oncology). Our longstanding clinical relationships with Gundersen Lutheran (gynecologic oncology surgical services) and Watertown Regional Medical Center (perinatal consults and antenatal screenings), continue to thrive.

Over the past several years, we have continuously improved patient satisfaction scores and consistently rank as one of the top performers among UW clinical departments. Collectively and as individuals, our providers have been recognized for excellent patient care within our organization and by local media.

Our General Obstetrics & Gynecology Division is unparalleled in the community in the areas of low and high-risk obstetrics, primary gynecologic health care, and treatment of malignancies of the female genital tract. Our physicians presided over more than 14,000 deliveries over the past six years. Advances in prenatal diagnosis and ultrasound allow us to provide optimal care during all stages of pregnancy and plan for complicated diagnoses. By supporting the Unity Health Insurance 9 Months & More program, we work to help expecting mothers reach the goal of full gestation before delivering.

In recent years, our Gynecology and Urogynecology Division has increased to include five physicians and three nurse practitioners at three primary locations. Our pediatric and adolescent gynecology clinic focuses on the urogynecologic health of children and teens, while our adult clinics include care for pelvic pain, gynecologic cancers, urogynecology, pelvic floor disorders, infertility, and endocrinology. Our surgical cases have steadily increased over the past six years. During that time, our faculty have developed significant expertise in minimally invasive surgery, and are now recognized nationally for innovation in robotically assisted surgery. Consequently, our inpatient census has decreased while surgical volumes have increased.

Our Gynecologic Oncology team consists of five MDs, two physician assistants, and two nurse practitioners practicing at the University of Wisconsin Paul P. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center, where we see patients with common and rare gynecologic cancers including cervical, ovarian, uterine, vulvar, vaginal, gestational trophoblastic disease, leiomyosarcoma, mixed mullerian tumors, and pseudomyxoma peritonei. Treatment is individually tailored to ensure that our patients receive state-of-the-art care in surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. In addition to treatment, we are committed to improving women’s quality of life and minimizing side effects while they undergo therapy.

Our Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM) specialists at the Center for Perinatal Care—a joint program with Meriter Hospital—guide parents, sometimes even before pregnancy, through the gestation and birthing process. Our prenatal diagnosis unit, staffed by experienced fetal sonographers, medical assistants, genetic counselors, perinatologists, pediatric cardiologists, and a nurse specialist devoted to fetal conditions, performs more than 10,000 exams every year. We are the only accredited fetal echocardiography center in Wisconsin and one of few in the Midwest. We have over 5,500 visits each year at our perinatal clinic, where perinatal nurses, a clinical nurse specialist for diabetic care, dieticians, social workers, and other ancillary professionals collaborate to provide comprehensive care. Additionally, our MFM faculty read ultrasounds from all UW general Ob-Gyn clinics.

At Generations Fertility Care (GFC), experts in both female and male infertility educate, counsel, and care for the whole couple together and provide coordinated, time-effective, and cost-effective care. We increased our in-vitro fertilization (IVF) volume from zero in 2007 to 120 cycles in 2013. Since 2010, for women younger than 35 years old, 52.3% of embryos transferred at GFC resulted in live births or ongoing pregnancies, better than the 2012 national average of 47.1%. In 2013, 53% of our IVF cycles involved elective single-embryo transfers (eSET). In recent years, we have recruited additional MD and PhD faculty members who have contributed greatly to our success in reproductive endocrinology and infertility.

Educational opportunities abound in our department at all levels of learning, including lectures, rotations, clerkships, mentorships, and hands-on learning in our state-of-the-art Women and Infants Simulation and Education Lab. Each week during “Thursday Morning University,” we enjoy five hours of protected time for grand rounds, morbidity and mortality, journal club, and resident education conferences. Students in our medical student clerkship develop skills and clinical understanding in the full array of specialties within our field. We have increased faculty support for medical student interest groups, raised medical student test scores in Ob-Gyn, improved student satisfaction with the clerkship experience, and upturned the number of medical students who match with Ob-Gyn residency programs (8% of graduating UW medical students in 2013).

Our residency program produces outstanding, inquisitive, and knowledgeable obstetrician-gynecologists equipped to become leaders in our field. We are committed to dedicated residency education time, robust simulation opportunities, and family planning training. Our curriculum is designed for breadth, depth, and innovation, and to achieve desired Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology outcomes. Our program features a surgical case volume in the 70-90th percentile, gynecologic office practice experience, structured oral exam preparation, and a strong focus on resident wellness and satisfaction.

Our nationally recognized maternal-fetal medicine and gynecologic oncology fellowship programs focus on clinical, academic, and research training in order to produce outstanding clinician-scientists, and our clinical fellows often pursue doctoral or master’s degrees. Our two T32 training grants support clinical and pre-doctoral fellows in the areas of health disparities, and endocrinology and reproductive physiology.

We are committed to full departmental collaboration, integration, and support to achieve outstanding basic, clinical, and translational research. In recent years, our research has expanded from the bench to the bedside—and from the bedside to the bench—through collaborations between department clinicians and basic scientists in our Reproductive Sciences Division. In this interdisciplinary environment, we are expanding the knowledge base regarding pregnancy, fertility, and sexual behavior; developing the next generation of clinician-scientists; and pursuing scientific advances that continually improve care for women at local, state, national, and international levels.

We have increased our cumulative publications, presentations, IRB submissions, and grant submissions, largely by broadening translational research involving MD and PhD faculty, as well as clinical and non-clinical trainees. Our nationally recognized maternal-fetal medicine and gynecologic oncology fellowship programs contribute greatly to our research infrastructure, as does our revamped and reorganized resident research program, with its focus on specific randomized clinical trials under the direct mentorship of our basic science and clinical faculty.

Since 2009, our department has received nearly $16 million in extramural research funding to support clinical trials, bench science, translational research, and research training programs, including the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) Scholars and Health Disparities Research Scholars programs. Private gifts and events like the annual Sparkle of Hope fundraiser for gynecologic cancer research continue to help us expand and diversify our research efforts.

The University of Wisconsin has been guided for over a century by the “Wisconsin Idea”—that discovery and innovation should extend beyond the classroom to benefit people everywhere. Similarly, our teaching, research, outreach, and public service efforts extend beyond the bedside or the laboratory. These efforts allow us to enhance the visibility of our work and build strategic connections with individuals and organizations that share our mission of improving women’s health locally, nationally, and globally.

Since 2009, our department has served as the charity partner for the annual Madison Mini Marathon, a family-friendly event that draws over 5,000 runners and 10,000 spectators each year. A portion of race proceeds benefits our Healthy Women, Healthy Babies Fund, which in turn helps to support other outreach and community education activities like our quarterly Healthy Women Community Talks, highlighting topics of interest to women, such as healthy eating, menopause, pelvic health, and fertility.

Through our Wisconsin Partnership Program grant with the Dane County YMCA, we are addressing obesity during pregnancy by promoting physical activity and good nutrition for pregnant women in underserved communities. With financial support from the March of Dimes, we are initiating Centering Pregnancy groups at our brand-new Arboretum Clinic, located in one of Dane County’s most economically and racially diverse areas. These groups provide a dynamic atmosphere for learning and sharing that is impossible to create in one-on-one prenatal care. We educate ourselves and others in our field through our annual intraprofessional conference—Innovations in Women’s Health—aimed at informing providers about state-of-the-art advances through presentations by local, regional, and national experts.

The key to our continuous improvement as a department is the development of our faculty and staff—both as individuals and as a meaningfully integrated team working toward common goals. We have instituted a comprehensive faculty development platform, allowing faculty members to identify and reach personal goals in the academic, clinical, and educational arenas. We have implemented new tools to address our faculty’s professional needs. These include internal grant funding for those seeking to enhance surgical techniques, instructional skills, or research methodologies, and semi-annual educational retreats dedicated to challenging, everyday issues like work-life balance. By upgrading our teaching curricula and inviting lectures by nationally prominent, CME-certified speakers on cutting-edge Ob-Gyn topics, we are reinforcing the strengths of our faculty and trainees alike.

In addition to faculty mentoring committees, we have established an Internal Review Committee to help enable probationary faculty members progress toward promotion in clinical health sciences or tenure tracks. We have made strides to enhance career satisfaction and decrease voluntary attrition by continually recognizing faculty and staff excellence.

The evolution of our faculty has been made possible through the simultaneous development of our support infrastructure. Since 2008, our support staff has more than doubled to include new administrative, outreach, communications, and I.T. specialists, education and research coordinators, coders, and a philanthropic development manager. We work to increase recruitment, job satisfaction, and retention of outstanding administrative and academic staff, and have established a staff development program that parallels faculty development, in order to ensure that each individual across our organization is engaged and able to achieve professional goals.

We rely on and are deeply grateful for the generosity we receive from people like you—our patients, friends, and many others from the community who help us advance our important work. Your financial support helps us provide our patients with the best, most compassionate, state-of-the-art care available; educate the next generation of outstanding obstetrician gynecologists; and take our cutting-edge research from the lab bench to the bedside as quickly as possible.

Gloria E. Sarto, 1958 Med School Graduation

The Gloria E. Sarto, MD, PhD Chair in Women’s Health & Health Equity Research Fund supports a $1.5 million endowed chair, which will allow us to recruit and retain a top physician or PhD researcher whose work is focused on advancing equity in women’s health. We are leaders in this area because Dr. Sarto has called the University of Wisconsin-Madison her academic home for most of her life. The Healthy Women, Healthy Babies Fund supports the department’s work in compassionate patient care, academic and research excellence, public service, and community outreach. The Stork Fund—now in its infancy—will assist infertile couples and individuals, as well as patients of reproductive age who face a cancer diagnosis and want to preserve their fertility. The Gynecologic Oncology Research/ Program Directors Fund supports cutting-edge research to find new ways to detect cancer earlier and improve outcomes and quality of life for the women to whom we provide care.

Learn more about opportunities to support our work at obgyn.wisc.edu/donate. If you would like to make your gift by mail, simply make a check payable to the UW-Foundation/Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, specify the fund in which you would like to invest, and mail it to: UW Foundation, U.S. Bank Lockbox, Box 78807, Milwaukee, WI 53278-0807