ACOG Elects New Officers

Nashville, TN — Today, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) announced the election of Eva Chalas, M.D., of Garden City, New York as president-elect; Sharon T. Phelan, M.D. of Albuquerque, New Mexico as Secretary; Kirsten M. Smith, M.D. of Hockessin, Delaware as Fellow-at-Large; and Anne L. Banfield, M.D., of Elkins, West Virginia as Young Physician-at-Large. They assumed their respective offices on May 5, 2019.

Eva Chalas, M.D. is a professor and vice-chair of obstetrics and gynecology at NYU Long Island School of Medicine. She holds the administrative position of Physician Director at the Center for Cancer Care and as NSQIP Surgeon Co-Champion at NYU Winthrop Hospital in Mineola, New York.

Dr. Chalas received her Medical Degree and completed her residency training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Stony Brook School of Medicine. She completed a subspecialty fellowship training in Gynecologic Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, where she also served as the American Cancer Society Fellow.

Dr. Chalas has held many roles in ACOG over her career in Obstetrics and Gynecology. She has been the Chair of ACOG District II, the Chair of the Council of District Chairs, served on many College committees and has had numerous leadership positions at both the national and District level. Notably, she has served as Secretary-Treasurer for Society of Gynecologic Oncology, was a two-term Governor to the American College of Surgeons, and has served as Vice Chair Elect for the Foundation of Women’s Cancer and the Society of Gynecologic Oncology representative to the ACOG executive board.

Dr. Chalas has received many awards and honors in teaching, cancer care and research. Throughout her career, she has been dedicated to advocating and caring for women with gynecologic cancers or complex gynecologic problems.

Sharon T. Phelan, M.D. is a professor emeritus in the Department of Ob-Gyn at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine in Albuquerque New Mexico. She served as Director of Labor and Delivery and Departmental Safety Officer until her "retirement" two years ago. As emeritus she continues to cover Labor and Delivery and some Title V/X clinics within the metro area. She received her medical degree and residency training at the University of New Mexico.

Dr. Phelan has been very active in ACOG with her national, District and Section involvement. She has served on many ACOG task forces, work groups and committees, including Ob Practice, and was Chair of the ACOG Grievance committee and the Scientific Program committee. She has been the NM section chair for a number of years.

Dr. Phelan was instrumental in resurrecting the New Mexico Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC), getting MMRC legislation passed in the state, and establishing a District VIII wide MMRC that is supporting establishment of legislation and MMRCs across the 12-state district. In her capacity as chair of the MMRC she serves on the executive board of the New Mexico Perinatal collaborative. She commonly serves as an ACOG representative with the March of Dimes on the topic of smoking cessation and even chaired the toolkit on this topic for ACOG.

Her tenured career has focused on general obstetrical and ambulatory gynecologic care concentrating on underserved populations and the education of residents. In her free time Dr. Phelan enjoys road trips with her husband of 44 years (retired PhD in education administration) that often include trips to Memphis, TN and Birmingham, AL to visit her children, their spouses and her 3 grandchildren.

Kirsten M. Smith, M.D. is a practicing ob-gyn at Women Living Well, a division of Women First, LLC in Hockessin, Delaware and Active Staff of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology for the Christiana Care Health System in Newark, Delaware.

Dr. Smith received her medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine in Miami, Florida and completed her residency training at Christiana Care Health System. Dr. Smith sat on The ACOG Committee on Health Care for Underserved women and the Committee on Nominations. She has also been active at the District and Section level serving as the ACOG Delaware Section Junior Fellow Vice Chair, Fellow Secretary, Fellow Treasurer, Fellow Vice Chair, State Legislative Chair and Fellow Chair and District III Junior Fellow Vice Chair and Junior Fellow Chair.

Dr. Smith received the Crozer-Chester Medical Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty Award for exemplifying the ideals of high quality, humanistic patient care and respectful, compassionate interpersonal interactions in daily practice in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007. Dr. Smith has served as the Ob/Gyn Specialty Society Representative for the Medical Society of Delaware for the past 11 years. Throughout her career, she has remained dedicated to increasing women's access to health care and providing care for women of all ages, ethnicities and orientations. She strives keep to the vision of her practice Women Living Well " to live as we speak, to respect one another and the world around us, to 'live well', and to provide compassionate and innovative care that helps women to truly live well."

Anne L. Banfield, M.D. is a practicing ob-gyn at Women’s HealthCare in Elkins, West Virginia and Clinical Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology for the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine. She is also the Director of Women’s Health Services and member of the Peer Review committee at Davis Medical Center. She is a member of the West Virginia Perinatal Partnership's Board of Directors and Central Advisory Council.

Banfield received her medical degree from West Virginia University School of Medicine in Morgantown, West Virginia and completed her residency training at Western Pennsylvania Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Banfield is the Young Physician Representative for the West Virginia section of ACOG and currently sits on the ACOG West Virginia Section Legislative Committee. She is also a member of the West Virginia Family Health Quality Improvement Committee, the Davis Regional Health Partners Physician Advisory Council and serves as co-chairperson of the West Virginia Tobacco Free Pregnancy Advisory Council.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is the nation’s leading group of physicians providing health care for women. As a private, voluntary, nonprofit membership organization of more than 58,000 members, ACOG strongly advocates for quality health care for women, maintains the highest standards of clinical practice and continuing education of its members, promotes patient education, and increases awareness among its members and the public of the changing issues facing women’s health care. www.acog.org