This content is sponsored by St. Elizabeth Healthcare.
Having a care team that you trust is important, especially if you are a woman facing OBGYN concerns that may be deeply personal and add worry or stress to your everyday life. At St. Elizabeth Women’s Health, doctors like Dr. Abby Loftus-Smith, are dedicated to providing exceptional care to women of all ages. From adolescent OBGYN care to menopause patients, the team of doctors in the Women’s Health Department at St. Elizabeth has a specialist for every stage of a woman’s life.
“At St. Elizabeth, our goal is to take care of women and take care of women well. I never want to feel like one of my patients believes one doctor gets ‘it’ but no one else does. We want to work as a team. We work collaboratively with other primary care, pediatrics, breast care, oncology, urogynecology, and maternal-fetal medicine specialists. Our number one question is ‘How do we make care consistently better for women in the long term?’ Dr. Loftus-Smith said.
To learn more about the care process, LINK nky sat down with Dr. Loftus-Smith to discuss tackling personal questions about OBGYN health and how patients and doctors can work together to find solutions.
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LINK nky: Could you tell me the range of medical services available for women’s health, and how these services cater to the unique needs of women at different life stages?
Dr. Loftus-Smith: “For obstetric health, we have a birthing center, and a Level 3 NICU so we can provide care for all pregnancies, and pregnancy complications including high-risk pregnancies. We have both physician and midwifery care. We support a range of birth options. We also have gynecological surgery at all our hospitals in Florence, Fort Thomas, Edgewood, and Dearborn, Indiana. We offer minimally invasive surgical options, breast health screenings, and cancer screenings. We have both urogynecology and gynecologic oncology services available for our patients.
The nice thing about having a large women’s health division is that we have physicians with varied interests and specialties. We have physicians interested in perimenopause, and menopausal health including hormone replacement therapy. On the flip side, we have providers who specialize in teenage adolescent care to ease the transition from a pediatrician to a gynecologist’s office and address issues that may arise. Everyone has their own niche and are really passionate about what they do.”
LINK nky: How do you make sure that each patient’s individual needs and concerns create a personalized and comfortable healthcare experience?
Dr. Loftus-Smith: “I try to introduce topics that are pertinent to the phase of life people are in. For example, in menopausal patients, I’ll ask ‘Are you having hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness?’ which may make them more comfortable to discuss their concerns. It is important to normalize women’s health topics.”
LINK nky: Can you explain how St. Elizabeth addresses existing health issues but also empowers women to prioritize their long-term reproductive health?
Dr. Loftus-Smith: “When I have conversations with patients at a young age, I try to determine what their long-term reproductive goals are. If they are planning on having children and trying to determine a timeframe, I can help make the best decisions for optimizing both short and long-term care. For example, if a patient is having a bleeding issue, I take into account their reproductive goals, health history, family history, and personal feelings about taking long-term medications or surgical intervention.”
LINK nky: The website mentions advanced technologies and innovative approaches in the field of women’s health. Could you provide specific examples of how St. Elizabeth integrates these advancements into its OB-GYN practice, and how patients can benefit from the latest medical developments in this area?
Dr. Loftus-Smith: “The biggest advances in technology are minimally invasive procedures. Years ago, if you had bleeding, an open hysterectomy was the primary option. Now there are so many minimally invasive options that can be done in the office or outpatient surgery center, which minimizes recovery time.”
LINK nky: How do you handle shared decision-making between providers and their patients, particularly in complex or sensitive medical situations?
Dr. Loftus-Smith: “I don’t try to dictate care to people. There are some really cut-and-dry treatments for certain medical conditions. If someone has cancer and we recommend a hysterectomy, I’ll explain why I think this is the necessary treatment. With other health issues, for example, prolapse, I offer multiple treatment options and help patients navigate what is best for their lifestyle. When patients ask what I would do, I try to use the information they have provided to make the best recommendation for their personal health.”
