My fifth rotation was OBGYN at Woodhull. This was my second time back at OBGYN/Woodhull since I already did a week back in March at the same site prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Given that this was my second time at Woodhull, I was very familiar with the hospital and already knew some of the midwifes and doctors there. Out of the 4 weeks, 2 of the weeks I was overnight for OB-call and GYN-call and the other 2 weeks I was down on the 7th and 8th floor for clinical week. Each day I would look at the schedule of the practitioners who were working that same shift as me and would let them know that I was available and ready to see new cases with them. During this rotation, I was able to see multiple and very interesting cases and was lucky enough to also scrub-in in a few surgical procedures.
Unlike my previous rotation in FM where we had only one provider to work with, at Woodhull we had the opportunity to work with multiple provides, from PA’s to midwives and doctors. During my overnight shifts I would go downstairs and introduce myself to all the medical staff and would also leave my number just in case they had an interesting case for me to see. If they didn’t call, I would occasionally go down and check every hour and during this time I would also go to every patient’s room and introduce myself just so if they saw me again with a provider they wouldn’t feel uncomfortable. Clinical weeks were a bit different because I would go to the clinic in the morning and ask one of the providers if I could stay with them for the rest of the day. I would mostly observe and do a quick history and physical exam and occasionally also perform a pelvic exam and pap smear.
One element I loved during this rotation was the ability to scrub in for C-sections. On my first OB-call I was able to scrub in for a C-section for a pair of twins. Of course, I was very nervous as this was my first time scrubbing in since rotations resumed after COVID-19 quarantine. I made sure I didn’t mess up my scrubbing procedure and I was even able to assist during the procedure by holding the light, cutting the umbilical cord and do 2 stitches. Dr. Jones was really great with students and was willing to teach if you showed interest. I was able to scrub in with him 2 more times and it was a very memorable experience.
One memorable experience during this rotation was when I saw an incomplete abortion and the D&C procedure done for this patient. Patient came in complaining of bleeding and when the PA did a pelvic exam she noted POC coming out as well. She used sterile speculum and ring forceps to extract POC out of the vaginal canal and sent patient for a D&C to have the rest of POC removed. In these situations, it’s also very important to know how to break the news to the patient and comfort them as they are going through a hard time.
One challenge that I experienced during my OBGYN rotation was trying to stay in the room as the patients were being examined. During my clinical weeks, a few patients did not feel comfortable with a male student being in the room during pelvic exams which was understandable. One way I tried to improve this situation was by introducing myself prior to patient seeing the providers so when they came in the room and saw me there, they already knew my name and that I was a student. This approach did help and I was not being kicked out as much as on my first day there. Overall, this has been a great learning experience and I’m excited to start my next rotation in Pediatrics.
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