Who is Dr. Iqbal?
The joyful anticipation of childbirth can also be fraught with anxiety, particularly if the pregnancy is considered high-risk, or unexpected problems develop. That’s when mothers and their families need more than just a capable physician. They also need a counselor, and a friend.
Sara Naeem Iqbal, MD, makes sure they have all that, and more. As program director for MedStar Washington Hospital Center’s Maternal-Fetal Medicine program, Dr. Iqbal believes that while each pregnancy is unique, the goal is the same—to fully support the mother with the best possible care throughout a high-risk pregnancy, and the baby’s arrival.
A voracious student of science while growing up in Pakistan, Dr. Iqbal pursued medicine as a profession because it allowed her to apply her interests toward helping people.
“You get to make a difference in someone’s life,” she explains. “You ease the sufferings, cure the disease and are able to feel inner satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.”
Why Maternal-Fetal Medicine?
Maternal-fetal medicine likewise provided the opportunity to not only care for a mother and baby, but also focus on what Dr. Iqbal calls “the un-routine” cases—women who encounter problems such as early labor, bleeding or high blood pressure.
“It was the perfect combination for me—prenatal care, ultrasound, genetic counseling, continuity of care and delivery,” she says. “I believe, by providing specialized clinical care, I can personally impact and make a difference in women’s lives.”
After completing medical school at Dow University of Health Sciences in Karachi, Pakistan, Dr. Iqbal joined her husband in the U.S. and completed her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Howard University Hospital. She focused on high-risk obstetrics during her fellowship in maternal-fetal medicine at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.
Dr. Iqbal’s interest in gaining and sharing knowledge has proliferated through her many research interests, including intrauterine growth restriction, intrahepatic cholestasis and the effects of diabetes and obesity on pregnancy. She works with ob/gyn residents and fellows at MedStar Washington Hospital Center and MedStar Georgetown University Hospital to help shape their own research pursuits, and leads the Hospital Center’s periodic conferences on high-risk obstetrics and morbidity and mortality.
Outside the Hospital
Given such a busy, intense schedule, it’s no surprise that Dr. Iqbal enjoys spending as much time as possible with her husband and three daughters. And if she can help her patients achieve that same degree of serenity, it makes the long hours and hard work worthwhile.
“I feel a sense of fulfillment when I help women,” Dr. Iqbal says, “and in turn give them and their child a healthy, happy life.”
Thank you, Dr. Iqbal, for everything you do!
