My experience at Woodhull’s OBGYN department varied depending on whether I was at the women’s health clinic, overnight call, or day shift for GYN. In the women’s health clinic, I was able to observe many different provider’s style when it comes to interviewing and taking a history. I was especially thankful towards Professor Melendez because he was the first provider to thoroughly teach me how to use EPIC, ranging from write notes to placing orders and more. He was also very patient when teaching me how to perform the pelvic and speculum exam, which was a challenge of mine prior to starting this rotation because I did not have the opportunity to perform any of these exams before. I find that the most challenging part of this exam is finding the cervix due to natural anatomical variations. However, this should become easier as I gain more experience. Additionally, I was able to work with providers who specialized in high risk pregnancies or infertility, which was valuable in solidifying my baseline knowledge and further understanding the pathophysiology behind these concerns. However, there were days in the clinic where there were at least 7-8 PA and medical students at a time, where being proactive and establishing previous rapport were important in finding a provider to work with.

In terms of my on call shifts, it really depended on how many patients there were during that shift. I remember that my first on call shift for OB had one patient already admitted to labor and delivery when I started the shift. When I ended my shift 16 hours later, not a single patient came in! Thankfully, there were more patients during my other on call shifts where I was able to scrub into the c-sections and learn how c-sections were performed. I did not have my surgery rotation yet so this experience was valuable since I was able to review sterile technique and suturing. I also remember being surprised at how long the labor process takes. Pushing the actual baby out took less time than I expected, rather dilating and delivery the placenta and all its associated contents took the bulk of the time. One of the midwives really inspired me because she constantly reassured the patient (who did not get an epidural and had a tear) and guided her through the entire process. She was patient, explained to the patient everything she was doing and why she was doing it, and was considerate and let the patient take breaks due to the pain. People often forget the importance of consent in addition to fully explaining everything to the patient therefore, the midwife was inspiring to me for those reasons.

I realized that a good majority of patients at Woodhull’s OBGYN department are Hispanic/Latino. I was surprised that many of the providers have the ability to speak basic Spanish. I was also surprised at myself for retaining much of the Spanish that I had learned in high school (which was many years ago). Not only was I able to understand a good majority of the conversations between the provider and patient, there were times where I helped translate. Depending on where I work in the future and whether there is a high demographic of Hispanic/Latino patients, brushing up on my Spanish is definitely useful.

Overall, my experience working in OBGYN was unique. Even though there are many births that occur daily, partaking in prenatal care, the actual delivery, hearing that baby’s first cry, and telling the mother that she did great really brings my experience to a full circle.

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