Ayala, Nina

Nina K Ayala

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Overview

Nina K. Ayala, MD ScM is an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Psychiatry & Human Behavior in the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine. Born and raised in New Haven CT, Dr. Ayala completed the Program in Liberal Medical Education at Brown University, graduating with an ScB in Neuroscience followed by medical school at Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She completed residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology at Northwestern University in Chicago, IL and fellowship in Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Women and Infants Hospital/Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She completed a Masters of Science in Clinical and Translational Research from the Brown School of Public Health.

Dr. Ayala works as a clinician-researcher in Maternal Fetal Medicine at Women & Infants Hospital. She is the Medical Director of the Antenatal Care Unit, focusing particular effort on improving patient experience and equity, as well as integrating research into clinical care provision.

Dr. Ayala’s research interests center around leveraging changes in perinatal resilience to impact somatic and mental health outcomes in pregnancy, and harnessing resilience-building interventions to address disparities in birth experience and outcomes.

Brown Affiliations

Research Areas

maternal mental health | Optimism | Perinatal medicine | perinatal mood and anxiety disorders | resilience

Publications Visualize it

Ayala NK, Whelan AR, Recabo O, Cersonsky TEK, Bublitz MH, Sharp MC, Lewkowitz AK. "Dispositional Optimism, Mode of Delivery, and Perceived Labor Control among Recently Delivered Parturients." American journal of perinatology, vol. 40, no. 2, 2023, pp. 122-127.

Full Text PubMed

Ayala NK, Fain AC, Cersonsky TEK, Werner EF, Miller ES, Clark MA, Lewkowitz AK. "Early-pregnancy dispositional optimism and pregnancy outcomes among nulliparous people." American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology MFM, 2023, pp. 101155.

Full Text PubMed

Bublitz MH, Salmoirago-Blotcher E, Sanapo L, Ayala N, Mehta N, Bourjeily G. "Feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effects of mindfulness training on antenatal blood pressure." Journal of Psychosomatic Research, vol. 165, 2023, pp. 111146.

Full Text PubMed

Cersonsky TEK, Ayala NK, Pinar H, Dudley DJ, Saade GR, Silver RM, Lewkowitz AK. "Identifying risk of stillbirth using machine learning." American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, vol. 229, no. 3, 2023, pp. 327.e1-327.e16.

Full Text PubMed

Ayala NK, Lewkowitz AK, Whelan AR, Miller ES. "Perinatal Mental Health Disorders: A Review of Lessons Learned from Obstetric Care Settings." Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment, vol. 19, 2023, pp. 427-432.

Full Text PubMed

Ayala NK, Schlichting L, Lewkowitz AK, Kole-White MB, Gjelsvik A, Monteiro K, Amanullah S. "The Association of Antenatal Depression and Cesarean Delivery among First-Time Parturients: A Population-Based Study." American journal of perinatology, vol. 40, no. 4, 2023, pp. 356-362.

Full Text PubMed

Whelan AR, Recabo O, Ayala NK, Clark MA, Lewkowitz AK. "The Association of Perceived Labor Agentry and Depression and/or Anxiety." American journal of perinatology, vol. 40, no. 10, 2023, pp. 1047-1053.

Full Text PubMed

Lewkowitz AK, Whelan AR, Ayala NK, Hardi A, Stoll C, Battle CL, Tuuli MG, Ranney ML, Miller ES. "The effect of digital health interventions on postpartum depression or anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials." American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, vol. 230, no. 1, 2023, pp. 12-43.

Full Text PubMed

Lewkowitz AK, Cersonsky TEK, Reddy UM, Goldenberg RL, Dudley DJ, Silver RM, Ayala NK, Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network. "Association of Perceived Lack of Paternal Support After Stillbirth With Maternal Postpartum Depression or Anxiety." JAMA Network Open, vol. 5, no. 9, 2022, pp. e2231111.

Full Text PubMed

Kole MB, Ayala NK, Clark MA, Has P, Werner EF. "Coping with the Unexpected: Patient Trust in Physicians following Delivery." American journal of perinatology, vol. 37, no. 7, 2020, pp. 666-670.

Full Text PubMed

Ayala NK, Schlichting LE, Kole MB, Clark MA, Vivier PM, Viner-Brown SI, Werner EF. "Operative vaginal delivery and third grade educational outcomes." American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology MFM, vol. 2, no. 4, 2020, pp. 100221.

Full Text PubMed

Background

Education and Training

Year	Degree	Institution
2023	ScM	Brown University
2014	MD	The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
2010	ScB	Brown University

Honors and Awards

2015-2018 Award for Excellence on CREOG Inservice Exam, Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University

2016, 2018 Resident Teaching Award, Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University

2017-2018 Education Chief Resident, Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University

2018 American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (AJOG) Society of Maternal

Fetal Medicine (SMFM) Research Excellence Award

2019-2021 Hassenfeld Clinical Fellow Scholars Program, Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute of Brown University

2020 Positive Champion for the Learning Environment Award, Alpert Medical School of Brown University

2020 Fellow Excellence in Resident Teaching Award, Alpert Medical School of Brown University

2020 Fellow Excellence in Medical Student Teaching Award, Alpert Medical School of Brown University

2021 Top Fellow, Resident Teaching Award, Alpert Medical School of Brown University

2022 Delta Omega National Honorary Society of Public Health

Affiliations Visualize it

Collaborators

Name	Title
Bublitz, Margaret	Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Associate Professor of Medicine
Kole White, Martha	Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Clinician Educator
Lewkowitz, Adam	Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Affiliations

Assistant Professor, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Alpert Medical School, Brown University, Providence, RI

Assistant Professor, Psychiatry & Human Behavior, Alpert Medical School, Brown University, Providence, RI

Medical Director, Antenatal Care Unit, Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island

Credentials/Licenses

FACOG

ABOG, OBGYN

2020-

Appointments

Attending Physician. Women and Infants Hospital, 2021-

Attending Physician. Rhode Island Hospital, 2021-

Researchers@Brown

Researchers@Brown

Nina K Ayala

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Overview

Brown Affiliations

Research Areas

Publications Visualize it

Research

Research Overview

Background

Education and Training

Honors and Awards

Affiliations Visualize it

Collaborators

Affiliations

Credentials/Licenses

Appointments

Teaching

Teaching Overview