Maternal Fetal Medicine

Division Head Introduction

Dr Ken Lim, Division Head MFM

A message from Dr. Ken Lim, Head of the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine.

The Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine of the University of British Columbia includes 20 perinatologists providing consultative care at 4 sites – BC Women’s Hospital, Surrey Memorial Hospital, Royal Columbian Hospital and Victoria General Hospital.  In addition, new clinics have been added at St. Paul’s Hospital and will expand in the future.  In addition to providing direct patient care at these sites, Division members provide clinical support to maternity care providers throughout the province and into the Yukon Territory through telephone and telehealth consultations, and through coordination of maternal transports.

Members of the Division work in close collaboration with specialists in other disciplines including Medical Genetics, Obstetrical Medicine, Neonatology, Pediatric Surgery, Reproductive Mental Health and many others.  Care is provided in a collaborative model with the patient’s primary care provider.  The interdisciplinary clinic provides patients with the services of perinatal nurses, social workers, dieticians and psychologists.

Administratively, the Division shows a strong presence at hospital, university, provincial, national and international levels.

For a complete list of the Department’s programs, visit the Education section.

Undergraduate & Postgraduate

The Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine is highly engaged in the educational mandate of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology for all learners. This includes leadership roles in the pre-clinical MD undergraduate program and significant contributions to the clinical undergraduate and postgraduate training in Ob/Gyn.

Fellowship

The two year Royal College accredited fellowship in Maternal Fetal Medicine is highly regarded and very competitive with two fellows currently in the program.

Continuing Medical Education

Importantly, members of the Division also participate in providing on-going education for practitioners as invited speakers and as members of national committees on obstetric practice. Many of the members of the Division have been involved in writing national guidelines on obstetric topics.

For a list of research areas in the Division, visit the Research by Division page.

Research activity within the division covers the spectrum from basic science to clinical research to population health and database analysis. Research strengths include: investigation of maternal hypertensive disorders of pregnancy / placental dysfunction, and perinatal factors determining outcomes for babies born preterm. Research collaborations span the research institutes on site as well as national and international networks. Funding for research in the division currently totals over twenty million dollars and includes awards from the CIHR, Michael Smith Foundation, the Gates Foundation, Genome Canada, WHO, BCCH Telethon, Variety Clubs and many other sources.

Research Groups

The Canadian Perinatal Network (CPN) is a national network led by Dr. Laura Magee and Dr. Robert Liston. 17 tertiary perinatal units across Canada are involved in the network. CPN's inaugural project, Birth before 29 weeks, seeks to identify best practice in the care of women with the most common causes of preterm birth at 22 to 28 weeks gestation.

The Pre-Eclampsia Integrated Estimate of RiSk for mothers (PIERS), led by Dr Peter von Dadelszen, is an international, multi-centre collaboration to develop a model to predict risk of adverse outcomes in women admitted to hospital with pre-eclampsia. The PIERS model will contribute to our understanding of the pathophysiology of pre-eclampsia, which we hope will lead to the development of new appropriate treatments and interventions to reduce maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality associated with this condition.

The Research in Advanced Fetal diagnosis and Therapy Group (RAFT) is a consortium of researchers dedicated to facilitating research as it pertains to fetal diagnosis and therapy. RAFT is comprised of researchers from various disciplines including obstetrics, medical genetics, pathology, sonography, neonatology and epidemiology. The group as a collective is committed to working collaboratively in generating novel ideas for research within the Diagnostic Ambulatory Program. RAFT members meet regularly on the last Friday of every month at BC Women’s Hospital.

The goal of the Mother and Child Health Vancouver Foundation is to foster improved outcomes for mothers and their babies. The Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine will achieve this by improving education in obstetrics and gynaecology through support of faculty positions, graduate scholarships, and other academic activities deemed beneficial to this mission.

If you are interested in supporting this initiative please click here.