Iffath Hoskins, MD

I come from a family of doctors. Both of my parents and all three of my siblings are doctors, so becoming one was a natural choice for me. My siblings and I graduated from the same medical school in Karachi, Pakistan, and three of us now live and work in the United States.

I am the director of patient safety for the labor and delivery unit at NYU Langone’s Tisch Hospital. In this role, I oversee a group of obstetrician–gynecologists who provide around-the-clock monitoring and high-quality care to people in labor, ensuring a safe outcome. We partner with the patient’s attending doctor, assist with labor and delivery and related complications, and offer surgical help when necessary. If complications arise, we all work together to achieve the best possible outcomes.

We are the only patient safety program in the United States structured so that our sole responsibility is overall safety and quality in the labor and delivery unit. We are not assigned any individual patients. I am proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with attending doctors and nurses to offer the gold standard of medicine, meaning state-of-the-art, evidence-based care.

I am also president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the organization that creates evidence-based practice guidelines for this specialty. With my colleagues, I help ensure that these guidelines are put into practice on our labor and delivery unit. One of my goals as president of ACOG is to address our patients’ and healthcare providers’ mental health, helping with their overall wellbeing.

In addition to patient care, I conduct clinical research into surgical obstetrics and complications, such as obstetrical infection. I also oversee patient safety team quality improvement projects.

Throughout my career, I have received numerous awards for teaching and for my military leadership. Service has always been important to me. Before joining NYU Langone and what is now known as NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, I served for nearly 30 years in the United States Navy and the Marine Corps, earning the rank of captain and colonel, respectively. I have also served in leadership positions at March of Dimes, the American Red Cross, and Ronald McDonald House Charities.