Dr. Rachel Pauls Named a Woman of Excellence

Rachel Pauls MD (center)with Karen Mueller, vice president of Horan Associates, Inc. (left) and Kathy Rambo, chamber vice president (right)

Dr. Rachel N. Pauls of Sycamore Township, surgeon at TriHealth Physician Partner Cincinnati Urogynecology Associates (CUA), has been named one of 10 West Chester- Liberty Chamber Alliance Women of Excellence.

The women were chosen for making an extraordinary impact in their careers or volunteer work that has improved local business, education, culture and philanthropy. About 370 people attended the Nov. 16 event.

Pauls and Drs. Steven D. Kleeman and Catrina Crisp are surgeons at CUA with offices in West Chester, Bethesda Arrow Springs and Good Samaritan Hospital.

Pauls is an internationally-known expert in female sexual dysfunction and sexual pain.  The 50,000- member American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists named her a 2012 Mentor of the Year for her work training surgeons.

A subspecialty within the fields of obstetrics, gynecology and urology, urogynecologists are surgeons who treat women with pelvic floor disorders, urinary incontinence and bladder pain. CUA specializes in urinary incontinence, overactive bladder, pelvic prolapse and pelvic reconstructive surgery.

“Rachel would come into work an hour early to teach first-year obgyn residents about urogynecology, giving freely of her time to make certain  we became expert on significant areas of women’s pelvic health,” said Dr. Arpurva Pancholy, a former CUA Fellow and now assistant professor of urogynecology at Baylor College of Medicine in  Houston. “Her instruction and modeling of organized, professional behavior has positively informed my practice and enhanced my life.”

Pauls’ research focuses on pelvic floor disorders, female sexual function, and the impact of urogynecologic surgeries on sexuality. A Fellow of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Royal College of Surgeons in Canada, she and co-researchers at CUA have presented 20 original studies to conferences nationally and internationally over the last year.

Pauls also serves as reviewer for 12 peer- reviewed publications and is on the editorial board for The Journal of Sexual Medicine.

 In addition to her practice and teaching roles for TriHealth’s Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency and Fellowship Programs, Pauls is co-director of the Women’s Center for Specialized Care at Good Samaritan Hospital. She is a consultant for corporations involved in interventions for pelvic organ prolapse and sexual function, and volunteers for several national organizations, including the American Urogynecologic Society’s Education Committee.