Dr. Veronica Ades
Daughter of a Colombian mother and Puerto-Rican born Syrian Jew, Dr. Veronica Ades has always felt like a citizen of the world. The new Gynecologist at VA New York Harbor Healthcare System says she was bought up to understand the importance of community service. As a physician, her specific interest in Global Health and the disparities in wealth brought her to Uganda, South Sudan and Jordan with Doctors Without Borders and her fellowship in Reproductive Infectious Disease. On these overseas missions, she tended to difficult obstetric deliveries and a range of GYN illnesses.
Today, Dr. Ades, a native New Yorker, is back living in Brooklyn. At her new job at VA New York Harbor Healthcare System, she treats women Veterans with gynecological issues such as abnormal Pap smears and fibroids and performs laparoscopy and hysteroscopic surgery among other minimally invasive procedures. She advises women regarding routine mammograms, contraception, menopausal symptoms, substance abuse and prenatal and postpartum care. Women Veterans are referred to affiliated hospitals for deliveries.
Dr. Ades says, “I fell in love with Gyn in medical school because of its intensity and the opportunity to talk about subjects that may be taboo but are so important to people's lives." Among other areas of major interest, Dr. Ades says she is committed to treating patients who have experienced Military Sexual Trauma (MST), and in pursuing research about medical problems such as unintended pregnancy and infectious diseases related to these traumatic events. Beyond the clinical problems relating to MST, outside VANYHHS, Dr. Ades oversees a Gouverneur Hospital clinic on the Lower East Side for the care of survivors of sex trafficking and domestic abuse.
In general, Dr. Ades says that recovery for the survivors of abuse is multifaceted. Coming in for treatment is often an act of courage, and tolerating a medical exam itself may be a challenge for women who have suffered abuse.” Dr. Ades added, “the symptoms are worse if there's a history of childhood sex abuse; a sense of being trapped is worse that the trauma itself. Recovery depends on re-empowering oneself and coming to an understanding of one’s needs."
