surgery in OB

[avgjoe]

I really love surgery, but like many other things about OB (the patient pop, more continuity, etc). I'm currently interested in MFM. How much surgery do you do as an MFM? what kinds of surgeries?
Also, it is a little disturbing to see exactly how little surgery training there really is during hte 4 years of residency (in a couple of programs I looked at). I also have seen c-sections where the residents do not seem half as comfortable as the 2nd and 3rd year surgery interns. I really don't want this to become another round of 'obs are terrible surgeons (the stereotypical surgery perspective) vs. we are too! (the stereotypical ob response), but I also do want to know if there's a way for OB residents to get more surgery training or if the number of years of surgery training differs a lot between various residency programs. thanks!

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[undecided05]

Although I'm not going to pursue a residency in OB/Gyn (therefore probably not the MOST qualified person), I have a close relative who was trained at an institution with an extremely high volume of C-Sections, high risk OB, and Gyn Surgery. Based on personal experiences as a student, I would say that to become a better surgical technician, the key is volume. Ask how many procedures that the residents partake in and ask for specifics about getting to be the captain of the ship as opposed to being a first assist.

 

[avgjoe]

thanks undecided 05 ..
any of you OBs out there have some advice for me? Global? Thanks in advance!

 

[Global Disrobal]

My opinion is somewhat biased as I come from a traditionally heavy surgery program... However going back to your original question regarding MFM's and surgery, they basically thrive in office work and L&D. The extent of MFM surgery is C/S in high risk scenarios, Cerclage placements, and some late term therapeutic abortions.

If you are a fan of surgery, then you may want to consider Urogyn and Gyn-Onc as those two entail heavy surgical volumes and no obstetrics.

As for the comfort level of residents, I personally have not seen what you are describing at my program or the programs I rotated through in medical school. Also keep in mind that as an Ob-Gyn Intern (even 2nd year) the majority of your rotations are devoted to OB and other subspecialties (Ambulatory, Breast/Geriatrics/ER/ICU) and not necessarily Gyn which is surgical training. The OB residents get the bulk of their experience (and comfort) in 3rd and 4th year where they become surgeons or 1st assists that perform more than half of the case, making a comparison to Surgical R2 and R3's not an easy one.

Good luck with the decision process.

 

[avgjoe]

My opinion is somewhat biased as I come from a traditionally heavy surgery program... However going back to your original question regarding MFM's and surgery, they basically thrive in office work and L&D. The extent of MFM surgery is C/S in high risk scenarios, Cerclage placements, and some late term therapeutic abortions.

If you are a fan of surgery, then you may want to consider Urogyn and Gyn-Onc as those two entail heavy surgical volumes and no obstetrics.

As for the comfort level of residents, I personally have not seen what you are describing at my program or the programs I rotated through in medical school. Also keep in mind that as an Ob-Gyn Intern (even 2nd year) the majority of your rotations are devoted to OB and other subspecialties (Ambulatory, Breast/Geriatrics/ER/ICU) and not necessarily Gyn which is surgical training. The OB residents get the bulk of their experience (and comfort) in 3rd and 4th year where they become surgeons or 1st assists that perform more than half of the case, making a comparison to Surgical R2 and R3's not an easy one.

Good luck with the decision process.

hey global,
thanks a lot, that's exactly the perspective i needed as I definitely don't have the experience yet to know how things really are at many schools and needed advice from someone who has been there/done that - how much surgery the fellowships involve and your explanation of how the 3rd and 4th years do the surgery-heavy rotation help a lot and that makes sense as well.
Do you or anyone else happen to know which programs on the west coast are traditionally considered surgery-heavy?

 

[Global Disrobal]

Grew up in LA, addicted to In N Out and Jamba Juice, but I am straight up East Coast in terms of Ob-Gyn. I think some of the people on the forum are from the west... They'll probably shed better light on this.

Good luck!