Rachel Hughes, MD

I was born and raised in Cincinnati, OH. I attended undergrad in Indiana (Go Irish) and was active with the Gender Relations Center, working to make the campus a more welcoming home for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning/queer (LGBTQ+) students. I spent a large part of my time involved in the marching band and would not trade my front row seats at football games for anything. I started off as a science education major and have definitely brought my initial love of teaching and education to residency. My first introduction to the medical field came when I spent two summers serving at a pregnancy resource center for underserved women in Cincinnati. I quickly fell in love with all of the women we served as well as the nurses and other staff with whom I worked. During my second summer, I coordinated a public health needs assessment and established free sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing for women (that is still offered and free today!). After that, I was fully committed to a career in medicine, especially to continue serving those who most needed access to medical care. During medical school back in Cincinnati, I was involved with many student organizations focused on providing health education to a wide range of community members. I also served on our medical schools Service-Learning Advisory Committee to improve the service-learning curriculum and promote student group involvement in underserved parts of our community. I am so proud of my Cincinnati roots and loved serving as a tour guide, interviewer and host for students interviewing at the school. Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my husband, Mike, and our 11-year-old cat, Socks. We have a large bucket list of restaurants in Durham and Raleigh we are currently working to check off. When we are able to get out of town, we spend a lot of time with my parents in South Carolina and his family scattered up the East Coast. I have one little brother, Austin, who is currently deployed flying helicopters for the Army, and I love catching up with him whenever our schedules align. I am always trying to squeeze in as much yoga and hiking as possible and have recently learned to golf. We are already in love with the area and are so happy we had the chance to move here!