Saint Peter's University Hospital, which has been nationally recognized for its perinatal care services, became a designated Level III Perinatal Center in 1973 and the region's first state-designated Regional Perinatal Center in 1992. There are more than 500 low-birth-weight babies delivered at Saint Peter's University Hospital per year and more than 2,200 high-risk OB clinic visits per year. This large volume provides the backdrop for the residents' experience in high-risk obstetrics. The director of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine is Dr. Liam Ness.
Dr. Ness studied at Yeshiva University and Albert Einstein College of Medicine In New York. After his internship at the University of California at Los Angeles and residency at New York’s Cornell University, he practiced as a general obstetrician/gynecologist for 20 years before deciding to study maternal-fetal medicine through a fellowship at Thomas Jefferson Medical Center in Philadelphia.
The Maternal-Fetal Medicine service consists of one PGY-2 rotation for approximately 10 weeks. Faculty from the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine perform daily rounds with the two residents and run weekly Maternal Fetal Medicine conferences and a weekly interdisciplinary ultrasound/genetics conference. Additional education in high-risk obstetrical topics occurs during the weekly resident didactic sessions and grand rounds lecture series. Supervision is provided by the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine.