Maternal Fetal Medicine specialists from Woman's Hospital of Baton Rouge evaluate high risk pregnancy consultations in our region at St. Francis Medical Center weekly. The Perinatology Clinic is held each Wednesday, and one additional Tuesday each month. Appointments are offered from 8:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. on clinic days. The clinic is held in St. Francis Medical Center on the 4th floor, room 465.2. Patients must be referred by their local obstetricians. For more information, please phone 327-4042.
This clinic began in 1999, after local obstetricians recommended this service for our community. St. Francis Medical Center responded to this need and established the Perinatology Clinic. Now women with high-risk pregnancies do not have to travel to Shreveport, Jackson, or Baton Rouge for consultation by a Maternal Fetal Medicine specialist/perinatologist.
Dr. Alfred G. Robichaux III, the medical director of the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Center at Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge and one of the doctors who travels to Monroe for the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Clinics at St. Francis, said there are many conditions that can make pregnancies high-risk. Some of the potential problems he listed are mothers who are too old or too young, who have medical conditions such as hypertension or diabetes, bleeding during pregnancy, previous pregnancy problems, environmental exposures from chemical plants, or exposure to drugs, alcohol or certain medications.
"A lot of high-risk problems occur infrequently so the primary obstetrician may see them infrequently, whereas a high-risk obstetrician may see them more frequently and be able to advise the (patient’s primary OB/GYN) on management," Dr. Robichaux said. Maternal-fetal physicians are obstetricians who have received two to three years of additional education and experience in obstetrical, medical, and surgical complications of pregnancy.
Proper evaluation and treatment of high-risk pregnancies can usually result in healthier births and longer pregnancies for women who are at-risk to give birth prematurely, Dr. Robichaux said. In some cases the maternal-fetal specialists are able to just provide relief from anxiety to expectant parents who are concerned about a high-risk factor and need assurance that everything is OK, he said.
"We work hand-in-hand with their physicians. You have outstanding obstetricians there and we enjoy working with them," Dr. Robichaux said.
Women’s Hospital of Baton Rouge is a nationally recognized leader in women’s healthcare services. These doctors travel to St. Francis for the Maternal-Fetal Clinic:
Dr. Alfred G. Robichaux III, is the Medical Director of the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Center at Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge. He is a 1978 graduate of the school of medicine at Louisiana State University in New Orleans. From 1978-1982, he performed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Ochsner Foundation hospital and completed a Maternal-Fetal Medicine fellowship at the George Washington University School of Medicine in1984. He is board certified in Maternal-Fetal Medicine as well as obstetrics and gynecology.
Dr. Charles M. Stedman is a graduate of the Tulane University School of Medicine. He completed his residency at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix, and did his Maternal-Fetal Medicine fellowship at the University of Alabama. While still a resident, Dr. Stedman was the first to publish on the vaginal collection of amniotic fluid for the fetal lung maturity. He received an outstanding research award from the Society of Perinatal Obstetricians (SPO) for his paper on differentiating maternal from fetal blood during percutaneous umbilical blood sampling. He is also the 1998 Special Service award winner from SPO. Dr. Stedman is Vice-Chairman-elect of the Committee on Practice Management for ACOG and SPO, and the author of numerous articles and textbooks. Dr. Stedman is board certified in Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
Dr. Ron Jaekle, is a graduate of Southern Methodist University and the University of Tennessee Medical school. He completed his internship and OB/GYN residency at John Hopkins Hospital where he served as chief resident. His Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship was completed at Wake Forest University College of Medicine, North Carolina. Dr. Jaekle is board certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology in OB/GYN and Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
Dr. Mark G. Newman is a 1985 graduate of the Medical University of South Carolina. From 1985-1989 he performed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the Medical University of South Carolina and completed a maternal-fetal medicine fellowship at Emory University School of Medicine in 1998. He became board certified in obstetrics and gynecology in 1991 and is board eligible in maternal-fetal medicine. |
