Written by: c2023 Medical Student at McMaster University, Hamilton Campus What and where was your placement?
I did my 4-week OB/GYN core in Alliston at Stevenson Memorial Hospital (SMH.) How did you get to your placement? I decided to drive to my rotation from home (40-50 minute drive). In retrospect, I wish I had gotten the ROMP-funded accommodation for this site as there is a lot of home-call and it was difficult to make it in time being so far away from the hospital. Parking is arranged via the hospital and it's $40 for the whole month. I received funding for travel from ROMP. Describe a typical day at your core. I would arrive at 8-9am and meet with my preceptor (usually Dr. Silver or Dr. Margel) at the OBGYN clinic for the day. We would typically start seeing patients in clinic for antenatal visits and gyne complaints. Throughout the day when there are free moments you will head to the ward to see how your patients are progressing. I would then have lunch and return to clinic around 1 and continue to see patients til about 4-5pm. At that point, I would go see how the labouring patients are progressing and if they need to start pushing. I would typically leave around 5pm depending of course on the number of patients we had in labour. It was not abnormal for me to stay at the hospital well into the early hours of the morning if there were multiple patients waiting to deliver! What level of responsibility did you have as a medical student? In clinic, I would often see the antenatal visits independently with my preceptor coming by to confirm everything is well at the end. I would also see gyne consults (both in clinic and in emerg) and follow-ups and would review all cases with my preceptors. In clinic I got to do many small procedures from PAP smears, endometrial biopsies, IUD insertions and removals, biopsies, etc. Both Dr. Silver and Dr. Margel let you get quite involved in procedures which is a great learning experience! On the L&D ward, I would be quite involved in all stages of the delivery. I would often help mom push during active labour. I would also have the opportunity to catch babies (I caught ~5 babies throughout my rotation), deliver the placenta, repair tears and draw cord gases. If there were any difficulties during labour (such as a shoulder dystocia), my staff would take over from me. In the OR, you will be able to assist on many procedures (I got to 1st assist a C-section!) and Dr. Margel and Dr. Silver will allow you to close incisions. What are some common conditions you saw? And do you have any resource suggestions? Know common gynecological complaints such as dysmenorrhea, AUB, menorrhagia, lichen sclerosis and timelines for 2nd and 3rd trimester tests/scans. I would also review procedural skills such as speculum insertion and one handed surgical knot ties. Prior to your first day I would also listen to the "Pimped: Ob/Gyn: Before Your First: Vaginal Delivery" podcast that provided useful information to me about how typical vaginal deliveries go! What is your most memorable experience from this core? Definitely my first delivery where the family pulled me aside and thanked me for being apart of their new child's life! What was one thing you didn’t like? If you are interested in a high acuity setting with high-risk pregnancies this is not the site for you. High risk cases will be sent to Barrie/Newmarket, so you will mainly deal with low-risk pregnancies (which were still very exciting to me!) Do you have any recommendations for things to try in the local area? Eden Grill is a fantastic shawarma restaurant! Would you recommend this core to current students? I would wholeheartedly recommend Alliston to any med students interested or not interested in OBGYN. Both Dr. Margel and Dr. Silver are truly excellent and care for your learning. You will have many learning opportunities and the chance to do things that other clerks at different sites may not. It was a truly fantastic experience!
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Stevenson Memorial Hospital, background credit: stevensonhospital.ca
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