My name is Hillary McLaren. I'm an obstetrician/gynecologist. So I specialize in the care of women over the course of their lifespan.


And I have specialty training in what's called complex family planning. So that entails things like pregnancy options, counseling, early pregnancy loss or miscarriage. And then providing birth control or contraception for people who experience side effects or have other health conditions that might limit their options.


I chose to become a doctor because I always knew I wanted to be an OB/GYN. I found the topic of women's health care incredibly interesting after I took a class in undergraduate about women's health care. And I found it so interesting because I really learned a lot about how people can control their future by controlling how if and when they choose to get pregnant or parent.


I came to the University of Chicago Medicine as a trainee. I did my fellowship here in complex family planning. And during the course of my training, I fell in love with the spirit of the place.


The patients I work with here are very special. And the university and the institution as a whole is very committed to bettering the care of the patients we take care of and bettering the care that we provide for patients, in general.


We see a lot of patients who have a lot of complex medical conditions. And I have certainly become much more comfortable in helping people who have medical problems. Work their way through more common health problems like painful periods, figuring out a birth control, or even a high-risk pregnancy.


The patient is the expert in themselves, in their life experience in their body. And I am the expert in medicine. And I take a truly collaborative approach with my patients.


My hope is that they can come to me with their expertise and I can come to them with my expertise. And we can find a solution that fits into their lifestyle.