Jul. 11, 2025 By QNS News Team
NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst, located at 79-01 Broadway in Elmhurst, has appointed Dr. Sheela Maru as Director and Dr. Ben McVane as Assistant Director of the hospital’s Global Health Institute, the hospital announced Thursday.
The institute, which aims to transform care for historically excluded communities, builds bridges between the hospital and the communities it serves through partnerships, research, and education focused on global and local health issues.
“Dr. Maru and Dr. McVane are both outstanding physicians with strong backgrounds in advancing global health,” said Dr. Laura Iavicoli, Chief Medical Officer at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst. “Their deep commitment to patient care and dedication to researching and understanding global health and its implications have long been an inspiration to colleagues both within and beyond our institution. I am confident that in these new roles, they will continue to make an extraordinary impact—building partnerships, driving innovation, and shaping a more just and equitable future in global health.”
The Global Health Institute’s recent projects include the training of more than 30 community-based doulas through the Helping Promote Birth Equity through Community-Based Doula Care (HoPE) program to support over 275 birthing individuals. It has also launched a collaborative health and social navigation program for recent migrants, supported student and resident training in community health, and facilitated learning exchanges with international partners in the Philippines, Nepal, Kenya, and Kazakhstan.
“Congratulations to Dr. Sheela Maru and Dr. Ben McVane on their appointments to lead our Global Health Institute,” said Dr. Helen Arteaga-Landaverde, CEO of NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst. “Elmhurst Hospital serves one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse communities in the world, so advancing global health is key to our mission. I deeply appreciate Dr. Maru’s and Dr. McLane’s leadership and passion for improving health equity, and look forward to supporting their work to help underserved communities around the world.”
Dr. Maru, an attending OBGYN at Elmhurst Hospital, is also an Associate Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, with appointments in Health Systems Design and Global Health and in Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Science. Her research focuses on expanding healthcare access and improving quality for women and children in low-resource settings. She holds an MD from Yale School of Medicine and an MPH from Harvard University.
Dr. McVane, an emergency medicine physician at Elmhurst, is also an Assistant Professor in Emergency Medicine and Health Systems Design and Global Health at the Icahn School of Medicine. He works at the Indian Health Service Cheyenne River Health Center in South Dakota and serves as Medical Director at the Libertas Center for Human Rights. His research focuses on healthcare for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. He has worked with refugee populations in Greece, Bangladesh, and Mexico. He earned his MD from Columbia University and his MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.