Maria Elena Rhoads-Baeza

Biography

Maria Elena Rhoads-Baeza, MD, PhD, MAS, FACOG, is a Health Sciences Associate Clinical Professor in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospitalist Division of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of California, Irvine. She received her MD and PhD in Community Health from the University of Illinois, completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University Barnes Jewish Hospital, where she served as Chief Resident, and earned a Master of Applied Science in Patient Safety and Quality Improvement from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Rhoads-Baeza serves as Director of Patient Safety and Quality Improvement for Labor and Delivery, Director of the Division of OBGYN Hospitalists, and Director of the OB Hospitalists Fellowship Program at UC Irvine.

Rhoads-Baeza's work focuses on health equity, maternal health outcomes for BIPOC populations, and quality improvement in obstetric care. She is a co-investigator on a federally funded project, "The Black PEARL Model: Systemic Integration of Community Maternal Support Services to Achieve Birthing Justice, Equity, and Joy for BIPOC Families," supported by the HHS Office of the Secretary. She has received multiple teaching awards, including the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award from The Arnold P. Gold Foundation, the Humanism in Teaching Award from the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics, and the Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology National Faculty Award for Excellence in Resident Education.

Rhoads-Baeza serves as Co-chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at UC Irvine and is a member of the DEI Community Advisory Board for the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative. She is a Fellow of the Women's Health Policy Group at the National Hispanic Health Foundation California and serves on the Clinical Research Specialty Council of the National Hispanic Medical Association. She is a Fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a member of the Society of OBGYN Hospitalists, where she serves on the Fellowship Committee.

Education

• M.A.S. in Patient Safety and Quality Improvement, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2024
• Residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology, Washington University, Barnes Jewish Hospital, 2012
• M.D., University of Illinois, 2008
• Ph.D. in Community Health, University of Illinois, 2008
• B.S. in Health Sciences, Benedictine University, 1999

Distinctions

• Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award, The Arnold P. Gold Foundation, 2025
• Humanism in Teaching Award, Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO), 2024
• Excellence in Teaching Award, Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO), 2024
• Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology National Faculty Award for Excellence in Resident Education, 2023
• Chief Resident, Washington University, School of Medicine, 2011-2012
• Health Equity and Diversity Certificate, University of California, Irvine, 2021
• William Creswell Graduate Student of the Year, University of Illinois Department of Community Health, 2003
• Honorable Mention: School of Medicine Universal Faculty Mentoring Award, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, 2025
• Healing Without Delay Award, UCI Health Empowering Patient Progression (EPP) Strategic Operating Plan, 2024
• ARIISE Award, Your CARE^2 Matters Initiative, 2023