Announcements

Women & Infants researcher launches teen contraceptive website
In an attempt to provide a reliable and trustworthy source for reproductive health information for teenagers, one physician-researcher at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island has launched the website Ask A Doc RI. Details

FDA Clears Biomarker Test
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the nationwide use of tools that show the greatest specificity in estimating the risk of ovarian cancer in women with a pelvic mass. The test was developed through research led by Richard G. Moore, MD, from the Program in Women’s Oncology. Learn More Details

Thundermist Partners with Women & Infants
Thundermist Health Center partners with Women & Infants Hospital for newborn and women's care Details

Women & Infants Holds 128th Annual Meeting
Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island held its 128th Annual Meeting on December 13th at the hospital with a standing-room-only audience of community leaders, physicians and hospital staff. Details

Employees Honored at Women & Infants Annual Meeting
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W&I Gives First Tomosynthesis Mammograms in Region
Women & Infants is the first and only facility in southeastern New England to offer tomosynthesis, a new technology which was approved in February 2011 by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Details

Women & Infants Physician Promoted to Professor at Brown
Dr. Geralyn Messerlian, associate director of the Division of Medical Screening and Special Testing at Women & Infants, has been promoted to professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Brown. Details

CNE Representatives Selected for Innovation Advisors Program
Nancy Roberts, president and CEO of VNA of Care New England, and Dr. Betty Vohr, medical director of the Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic in the Department of Pediatrics at Women & Infants have been selected to be part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) Innovation Advisors Program. Details

Behavioral Health Specialist Joins Women & Infants' Staff
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CNE Representatives Selected for New Innovation Advisors Program
Congratulations to Nancy Roberts, president and CEO of the VNA of Care New England, and Dr. Betty Vohr, medical director of Women & Infants' Neonatal-Follow-Up Program, on being selected to be part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) Innovation Advisors Program. Details

Women & Infants Trustees Speak Out
Videos featured at the Women & Infants’ Annual Meeting on December 13th, highlighted the role of the hospital’s trustees in areas including quality, fiscal responsibility, philanthropy and community relations. View Videos Details

Dr. Maureen Phipps on domestic violence screening
Dr. Maureen Phipps, interim chief of ob/gyn, has been quoted in a number of national news media outlets on ACOG's recent recommendations for domestic violence screening. Details

Urogynecologist Joins Women & Infants' Staff
Urogynecologist Melissa Huggins, MD, of East Greenwich, has joined the staff of Women & Infants Hospital's Division of Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery. She sees patients at the Women & Infants Center for Women's Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery in Providence. Details

Obstetric Medicine Specialist Joins Women & Infants' Staff
Obstetric medicine specialist Kenneth Chen, MD, of Newton, MA, has joined the staff of Women & Infants Hospital as director of the Division of Obstetric and Consultative Medicine and has been appointed as assistant professor of medicine at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.He will see patients at the Women & Infants' Center for Women's Medicine and at the hospital's Integrated Program for High-Risk Pregnancy in Providence. Details

W&I Welcomes Urogynecologist and Obstetric Medicine Specialist
Women & Infants welcomes Dr. Kenneth Chen to the Division of Obstetric and Consultative Medicine and Dr. Melissa Huggins to the Division of Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery. Details

Research Published in Genetics in Medicine
Research by Drs. Glenn Palomaki and Jacob Canick from Women & Infants Hospital and Brown University has been published in Genetics in Medicine; shows that new DNA test that identifies Down syndrome in pregnancy can also detect Trisomy 18 and Trisomy 13. Details

Super Bowl Fan Photos
Check out some very cute Super Bowl fans on Women & Infants' Facebook page! Women and Infants Facebook

Ronald McDonald House Charities Awards Grant to Women & Infants
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Eastern New England recently donated $23,153 to Women & Infants to purchase seven infant warmers for the Labor, Delivery and Recovery Unit. The organization’s total giving to Women & Infants in recent years has reached nearly $75,000. Details

CVS Gives $97,000 to Transition Home Plus Program
CVS recently celebrated its annual Day of Giving by presenting a check for $97,000 to support the Transition Home Plus program at Women & Infants. Details

CVS Caremark Presents $97,000 Check
CVS Caremark Charitable Trust celebrated its nationwide "Day of Giving" by presenting Women & Infants with a check for $97,000 to support the hospital's Transition Home Plus Program. Details

W&I Named Center of Excellence for Neonatal Care for Sixth Year
For the sixth consecutive year, Women & Infants Hospital has been named a Center of Excellence for Neonatal Care by the Clinical Sciences Institute of OptumHealth, an independent audit company. Details

Physician to be honored as Legend
John Buster, MD, of Women & Infants' Center for Reproduction and Infertility, is being given a Legend award by the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center this spring. Learn more. Details

Women & Infants Names New Chief Nursing Officer
Angelleen Peters-Lewis, RN, PhD, has been appointed senior vice president for Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer at Women & Infants Hospital. Details

Women & Infants Studying Therapies to Relieve Urinary Urge Incontinence
Women & Infants is conducting a study to compare the effect of two therapies in women who have bothersome urinary urge incontinence after trying other treatments. Patients are currently being enrolled in the ROSETTA Study, part of the national Pelvic Floor Disorders Network. Details

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
Women & Infants' Center for Women's Gastrointestinal Health offers a comprehensive, multidisciplinary focus on problems with the gastrointestinal system of women, in a setting staffed by all female practitioners. Call (401) 453-7953 to schedule a screening. Details

Free Infertility 101 session with area experts planned
A panel of fertility experts from the Center for Reproduction and Infertility at Women & Infants is holding a free seminar called "Infertility 101: Everything You Need to Know About Getting Pregnant" on Saturday, March 10. Details

Women & Infants Physical Therapist Receives National Award
Physical therapist Wendy Baltzer-Fox from Women & Infants' Women's Health Physical Therapy Services has been presented with the Elizabeth Noble Award from the Section of Women's Health of the American Physical Therapy Association. Details

Physician honored for early hearing detection and intervention excellence
Betty R. Vohr, MD, director of Women & Infants Hospital's Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic and medical director of the Rhode Island Hearing Assessment Program, has been presented with the national Antonia Brancia Maxon Award for Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Excellence. Details

Prenatal Meth Use Creates Behavior Problems in Young Children
Dr. Linda Lagasse from Women & Infants' Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk has led a team whose research was published in today's Pediatrics. Details

Reception to Feature New Alex and Ani Design
Alex and Ani jewelry embodies beauty, serenity and style. The company recently partnered with W&I to create a new bangle that represents the hospital's mission and the patients it serves. This new design will be unveiled at a special reception on Thursday, April 5th, from 6 to 8pm, at W&I. The new expandable wire bangle will be available for limited purchase that night, and will go on sale at Alex and Ani retail locations and online May 1. Alex and Ani will donate 20 percent of the proceeds of the bangle to the hospital. Alex

April is Autism Awareness Month
Making an autism diagnosis is more than just labeling something. The true art of this task is taking the opportunity to inform families about the meaning of the diagnosis beyond the written words at the end of a long evaluation. Women & Infants' Brown Center for Children offers diagnosis and treatment services for Autism Spectrum Disorders. Read more

Alex and Ani bangle unveiled
At an intimate reception of hospital supporters last night, Cranston-based jewelry design company Alex and Ani unveiled its latest creation – a three-dimensional lotus blossom to benefit Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island. Details

Dr. William Oh Named Legend of Neonatology
William Oh, MD, former chief of pediatrics at Women & Infants Hospital, was recently inducted into the Legends of Neonatology Hall of Fame. Dr. Oh was one of two physicians inducted this year for contributions to the care of the critically ill neonate. Details

Research Shows Efficacy of Treatment Model Developed at Women & Infants' Infant Behavior, Cry and Sleep Clinic
Research has recently been published in the Infant Mental Health Journalthat supports an integrated model of care that is found at the Infant Behavior, Cry and Sleep Clinic at the Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island.Lead author on the research is Amy Salisbury, PhD. Details

W&I Participating in Study of Common Viral Infection in Pregnancy
Women & Infants, through its participation in the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network, has been named the lead center in a 14-site, $25 million study of cytomegalovirus (CMV), the most common infection during pregnancy. Researchers want to see whether giving recently infected pregnant women antibodies against CMV lowers the rate of CMV infection in their babies. Details

Where Families Begin
On Tuesday, May 1st, Women & Infants Hospital kicked off a new model of care on the Mother/Baby Units. The focus is on keeping the baby, mom and her significant other together as soon and as much as possible following delivery of the baby. Details

'Motherhood the Musical' supports Women & Infants
"MOTHERHOOD THE MUSICAL," on stage May 25 through July 1 at Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, is offering theater-goers a $5 discount and will donate $2 from every ticket purchased with the discount code WIHRI to Women & Infants Hospital. Variety calls the four-woman show "engaging, hilarious and touching." For tickets, visit trinityrep.com or call (401) 351-4242 and enter the code WIHRI. There is a limit of four tickets per customer. Details

Advisory to Maternity Patients at Women & Infants
As a result of two incidences of an undetermined odor in one section of the Labor-Delivery-Recovery Unit on Wednesday, April 25, Women & Infants Hospital acted out of an abundance of caution and temporarily relocated patients and staff to the Antenatal Care Unit in the hospital’s new South Pavilion. Details

Celebrate Mother's Day
Thinking about where to go with mom to celebrate Mother's Day? Consider Chelo's Hometown Bar and Grille, and mom won't be the only woman you show you care. This Mother's Day, 5% of all sales at all Chelo's locations will benefit Women & Infants Hospital. Details

37 Physicians at Women & Infants named Top Doctors by U.S. News
Thirty-seven physicians representing 15 specialties at Women & Infants Hospital have been named to the list of U.S. News Top Doctors. Details

Alex and Ani Unveils new WIH bangle
The latest bangle from Cranston-based jewelry design company Alex and Ani – a three-dimensional lotus blossom to benefit Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island – hit retail locations recently, just in time for Mother's Day. Details

Women & Infants to Receive $3.2 Million to Improve Health Care
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island is among the first batch of organizations selected for Health Care Innovation awards. Details

W&I Seminar for Professionals and Families of Children With Hearing Loss
Women & Infants, the Rhode Island Department of Health, and the Rhode Island Hearing Assessment Program (RIHAP) will present their 18th annual seminar, entitled "Creating Positive Environments for Children with Hearing Loss. "The all-day conference will be held on Monday, May 21, 2012 from 7:45 am to 4:30 pm at the Crowne Plaza, Warwick, RI. Details

Parents Honor Memory of Child with Donation to Women & Infants
Jada Baptiste and Lawrence Bethke donated nearly 700 books to Women & Infants' NICU in memory of their baby, Elias George Bethke. Details