Heather A. Smith, MD, MPH

Heather A. Smith, MD, MPH, is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist whose leadership is grounded in frontline clinical care and shaped by a career in health policy and organized medicine. Elected to the American Medical Association Board of Trustees (BOT) in June 2026, she brings more than two decades of experience improving care delivery and supporting physicians in practice.

Dr. Smith practices full time at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, one of the nation’s highest-volume obstetric centers, where she serves as the director of OB-GYN quality and leads multidisciplinary efforts to improve maternal outcomes, reduce disparities and strengthen care systems. In addition, she is also an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Brown University, where she teaches and mentors medical students and residents.

With a focus on advocacy, governance and collaboration, Dr. Smith’s leadership in organized medicine includes having served as president of the Rhode Island Medical Society, where she advanced physician engagement and state policy priorities related to practice sustainability and patient access. She has served as president of the AMA Foundation, leading strategic planning and governance efforts to elevate physician leadership and support community health, and as chair of the AMA Council on Legislation, where she helped guide national advocacy strategy on Medicare payment reform, prior authorization transparency and AI in medicine principles.

Dr. Smith’s connection to the AMA began early in her career when she became an AMA Government Relations Advocacy Fellow in Washington, D.C. She has served as a delegate to the AMA House of Delegates since 2008, contributing to national policy development and collaboration across specialties and states.

Across her clinical and leadership roles, Dr. Smith, who is known for bringing people together and helping groups move from discussion to action, has trained her attention on addressing administrative burden, workforce strain, challenges to the patient-physician relationship, quality improvement, maternal health and physician leadership.

Dr. Smith is a fellow of the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and her medical degree from the University of Massachusetts Medical School. In addition to completing a postdoctoral fellowship in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program at Yale University, she holds a Master of Public Health and a Master in Medical Sciences from Boston University.

2026–2027

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