UAB Department of OB/GYN Ranked Number Five in the Nation

By lAurA FreeMAn

Alabama has one of the best OB/ GYN facilities in the nation at UAB, which is ranked number five in U.S. News and World Report’s best hospitals for its excellence in obstetrics and gynecology. But it’s a sad irony that even the best hospitals alone can’t counter the economic, social and health-access issues that have led to our state having one of the worst infant and maternal mortality records in a country that ranks significantly lower than most first-world nations. In 2020, Alabama had the third highest maternal death rate in the U.S. In 2021, the U.S. had ten times the rate of maternal deaths as a number of comparable countries including Australia, Japan, Israel and Spain.

“Having a baby today is much safer than it once was. People forget that dying in childbirth or shortly after was not uncommon before modern obstetric and gynecological care,” said Warner Huh, MD, FACOG, FACS, professor and chair of the UAB Department of OB/GYN. “We’ve turned that around so that women now tend to live longer than men.

“However, we’re seeing a disturbing uptick in maternal and infant mortality, and that needs to be addressed. As a state and a country, we’re also nowhere near where we should be compared to our global peers.”

The recognition the UAB has received can reassure Alabama women that quality OB/GYN care is available here. “What sets UAB apart is a culture of commitment and excellence,” Huh said. “Our exceptionally talented and highly trained teams are focused on advancing women’s health and offering our patients the very best in everything we do. High-risk pregnancies including the sickest women and babies from across the state and region are referred here because physicians know we will put every effort into helping patients achieve the best possible outcome. Working with difficult cases every day also gives us the depth of expertise to deal with rare and challenging situations.”

UAB also has pockets of excellence in research and clinical care that expand the department’s capabilities in finding and developing innovative solutions. It is one of the few OB/GYN departments doing cutting edge research that changes the standard of care and incorporates it into clinical practice.

“We offer the only uterine transplant program in the south—and perhaps the only truly active program in the nation, as well as an excellent egg and fertility preservation program that can be particularly comforting to young cancer patients who want to become parents,” Huh said. “We are one of a handful of pediatric gynecology clinical programs in the US with an associated fellowship – ours is the only one in the Southeast region. Our researchers are making tremendous advances in reproductive cancers and understanding the role of HPV in cervical cancer. What we have learned is being translated into screening and treatment advances that are saving lives.”

Also highly ranked in best doctors, staff and patient satisfaction surveys, the department’s outstanding fellowship training and medical education programs, the medical center is also working to address some of the factors behind Alabama’s poor maternal and infants health scores.

“Poor outcomes are disproportionately found in patients of color and those who live in medically underserved areas,” Huh said. “We work with larger numbers of patients from those populations than most medical centers, and we have extensive research going on to investigate the reasons for health disparities and address them. Teamed with the School of Public Health, we’re looking

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