Ernest Lengyel, MD, OB/GYN Photo taken by Jordan Porter-Woodruff on 7/23/24
Ernest Lengyel, MD, has been appointed University of Chicago Health System leader in obstetrics and gynecology.
In this new role, effective September 2024, Lengyel leads UChicago Medicine's effort to define a system-wide strategy for women's health. His appointment supports the strides UChicago Medicine has made to become a national leader in women's health and expand access throughout the region.
The announcement comes as UChicago Medicine continues to expand access to a growing number of communities beyond its flagship University of Chicago Medical Center on the city's South Side. The health system now includes a new multi-specialty care facility in Northwest Indiana, a joint venture with AdventHealth's Great Lakes Region in the western suburbs, and Ingalls Memorial Hospital in Chicago's Southland, as well as dozens of outpatient and clinic locations throughout the region. It is also building a 575,000-square-foot cancer care and research facility, scheduled to open in 2027 on the main medical campus adjacent to the University of Chicago.
“Dr. Lengyel and his team will strengthen our commitment to high-quality clinical care and bring academic medicine to more communities,” said Mark Anderson, MD, PhD, executive vice president for medical affairs at the University of Chicago. “As we continue to grow, it is imperative that we effectively align our academic and clinical missions across all sites. This ensures that patients have access to coordinated, high-quality obstetrics and gynecology services and the latest innovative treatments, no matter where they live.”
In the new expanded role, Lengyel will have system-wide oversight of obstetrics and gynecology care and help improve quality, access and efficiency across the organization. He will align clinical, quality and operational processes, ensuring a seamless and consistent patient experience across all practice sites in the health system, which is publicly known as UChicago Medicine. One area of focus will be the integration of women's health services at Ingalls Memorial.
Lengyel will continue his role as chief of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. During his tenure, the department has experienced significant growth in all its missions, driven by faculty colleagues committed to providing high-quality clinical care. This includes:
The number of faculty members in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology has nearly tripled since 2015. It now ranks as the most diverse academic department in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Chicago. Expansion of outpatient services. B/GYN faculty completed more than 109,000 outpatient and ultrasound visits in fiscal year 2024. It also built the largest gynecologic oncology department in the Midwest, with 11 attending physicians. Collaboration with Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) on the South Side of Chicago. FQHC physicians see outpatients at FQHC, attend labor and delivery, and work at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Provide strategic leadership to open a specialized women's practice in Northbrook, and establish a new obstetrics and gynecology practice location in the northern suburbs of Chicago.
An expert in the diagnosis and surgical treatment of ovarian cancer, Lengyel joined the University of Chicago in 2004 and has been named one of the city's “Best Doctors” by Chicago magazine every year since 2010. He directs an active translational research laboratory at the center. Integrative Sciences focuses on understanding the biology of ovarian cancer. He has published more than 150 peer-reviewed papers and has received the National Institutes of Health R35 Distinguished Investigator Award and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund Clinical Scientist Award in Translational Research. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the American Medical Association.
