Dr. Fariba Mohtashami, shown here lecturing when she was Course Chair and Speaker, Laparoscopic Suturing Postgraduate Course, 45th AAGL Global Congress on Minimally Invasive Gynecology, Orlando, FL, USA, November 14, 2016. She is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, where she is Head, Division of General Gynecology and Obstetrics, and Head, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at St Pauls Hospital, Vancouver, B.C. Her Specialist Gynecological Medical Office is at 7th Ave and Burrard, Vancouver, B.C., Canada where has a specialist practice in Advanced Laparoscopic Gynecologic Surgery and Pelvic Floor Reconstruction.
Dr. Fariba Mohtashami M.D., F.R.C.S.C
Clinical Professor
Head, Division of General Gynecology and Obstetrics
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Head, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
St. Paul’s Hospital, UBC
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Academic Biosketch
Dr. Fariba Mohtashami is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, Canada, where she is Head, Division of General Obstetrics & Gynecology. She is also Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Paul’s Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Dr. Mohtashami completed her medical degree and residency training in Obstetrics and Gynecology in Tehran in 1997 before immigrating to Canada in 2002. She gained her Canadian credentials after a 5-year residency at the University of British Columbia, which she completed in 2009. At the completion of her OB/GYN residency, she received the “Laparoscopy Award,” presented to the Chief Resident exhibiting the best proficiency in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery. She next completed a formal Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery with Dr. John Thiel in Regina, Saskatchewan, in 2012.
Dr. Mohtashami holds a strong interest in benign pelvic surgery, with a personal Technicity Index of 97%. She is a Fundamental of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) Certified Proctor by the Society of the American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES). She is passionate about surgical education, emphasizing the FLS concepts, including laparoscopic anatomy, dissection, electrosurgery, and suturing. She is actively involved in teaching gynecology residents and fellows at UBC through hands-on surgical workshops, including dry, cadaveric, and live animal labs, formal lectures, and mentorship in the OR. She is a highly qualified preceptor for her colleagues in the Providence Health Care and distributed sites, who are advancing their skills in complex laparoscopic surgery. Her passion for surgical education has been recognized by several awards, including in 2023 Carl Nimrod Educator Award for outstanding achievement and dedication to making a difference through education and mentorship, SOGC; in 2019, Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Community Practice Teaching, UBC, Faculty of Medicine; the Dr. Mike Turko Surgical Teaching Award for outstanding surgical teaching in the UBC Residency Program in 2018; and in 2016 by the Association of Academic Professionals in Obstetrics and Gynecology of Canada (APOG) Carl Nimrod Award for Surgical Mentorship and also in 2016 by the Best Preceptor Award at the Annual APOG Minimally Invasive Surgery Workshop. More recently, the 2019 Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Community Practice Teaching and the 2025 Faculty of Medicine CME/CPD Award for Distinguished Service, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver.
Dr. Mohtashami is a regular Chair, Invited Speaker, and Faculty at a variety of National and International Conferences organized by the American Association of Laparoscopic Gynecologists (AAGL) and by the Canadian Society for the Advancement of Gynecologic Excellence (CanSAGE). She chairs post-graduate courses and workshops both internationally and nationally on Advanced Cadaveric Anatomy courses, live animal labs, and laparoscopic suturing, and was invited to perform live surgeries (3) at the 2018 Cape Town O&G Update Conference. She is a regular Invited Faculty in surgical training in advanced laparoscopic surgery for the Dutch Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology at IRCAD MIS Training Center, Strasbourg, France, and the 2025 and 2026 Masterclass – MINIMAL INVASIVE SURGERY, PARIS, National Academy of Surgery and ESGE-endorsed Masterclass of Minimally Invasive Surgery, Paris, France. She is the elected BC representative on the Canadian Society for the Advancement of Gynecologic Excellence (CanSAGE) Board of Directors, 2022-2024.
Dr. Mohtashami is a strong advocate of gender equity and promotes high-quality surgical education and equity for female surgeons, as well as equal access to treatment and vital hospital resources for women requiring gynecologic surgery. She was a member of the AAGL Diversity and Inclusion Committee between 2018 – 2022 and now sits as a Committee Member of the AAGL Grievance Committee (2023).
Recent Publications of Dr Fariba Mohtashami
Justin Mui, Lila Gottenbos, Christine Liu, Samar Hejazi, and Fariba Mohtashami* (2019). Increasing the Technicity Index to 92% in a Community Hospital: A Five-Year Retrospective Review.
Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology Canada 41 (12), 1709 – 1716.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jogc.2019.02.003.
Click here for pdf of Mui et al 2019 JOGC
Fariba Mohtashami (2023). Surgical Sexism.
Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology 30 (7), 517 – 518. Invited Editorial,
doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmig.2023.04.011
Click here for pdf of Mohtashami, F. 2023
Dr. Fariba Mohtashami is a regular teaching faculty of Pelvic Anatomy and Surgery, at IRCAD, Strasbourg, France. Pictured with (Left to right) Dr. Paul Van Kesteren, Dr. Fariba Mohtashami, Dr. Henk Schreuder, Dr. Peppi Graziosi, OBGYN from Amsterdam and Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Dr. Fariba Mohtashami.
Laparoscopic Uterosacral Vault Suspension: Anatomy and Comparison of Various Surgical Techniques were presented at the "Lunch with the Experts" event to Laparoscopy OBGYNs from around North America and the world at the 45th AAGL Global Congress, Washington, DC., USA, November 12, 2017.
PROVIDENCE GYNECOLOGIST’S NEW TECHNIQUE IMPROVES FIBROID SURGERY
Read the article here