Gynecology Block

This clinical block will give students experience with benign and malignant gynecological problems. During this rotation, students will join the Benign Gynecology and the Gynecology Oncology teams and assist in caring for emergency room consultations, in-patient consultations from other services, and pre-operative, intra-operative, and postoperative care of Gynecologic surgical cases. 

On the Benign Gynecology days, students will round on patients daily on weekdays. They will be expected to attend and participate in Gyn faculty teaching sessions (topic or chapter review) and pre-operative conference. Students will be expected to participate in surgical cases: review the preoperative work-up prior to the case, introduce themselves to patient, be available to observe the case, and assist in documentation, orders, and postoperative checks.

Learning Objectives for Gynecology Block:

Cognitive

Students should become familiar with the following topics:

• Normal menstrual cycle, amenorrhea, and abnormal uterine bleeding
• Normal and abnormal puberty
• Contraception and sterilization
• First trimester bleeding and abortion
• Uterine fibroids
• Menopause
• Infections - vaginitis, sexually transmitted infections, pelvic inflammatory disease
• Infertility
• Hirsutism and polycystic ovarian syndrome
• Vulvar disorders
• Pelvic relaxation and urinary incontinence
• Pelvic pain including dysmenorrhea, endometriosis, ectopic pregnancy
• Neoplasms of vulva, cervix, uterus, ovaries, gestational trophoblastic disease
• Sexual assault
• Gynecological procedures:
  Tubal ligation and laparoscopy, hysteroscopy and D&C, hysterectomy (vaginal, abdominal, laparoscopic), surgery for urinary incontinence and pelvic relaxation, surgery for gyn cancers

Knowledge and Skills Expectations

By the end of the Gynecology block students will be expected to competently:

1. Write a complete operative note
2. Discuss the normal hospital course after a routine Gyn surgical procedure
3. Discuss the appropriate work-up and differential for postoperative low urine output, fever, and wound problems
4. Discuss the relevant history, examination, and laboratory or radiology work-up involved in ER assessments of
   1. Pelvic pain and
   2. Abnormal vaginal bleeding
5. Briefly describe the differences between types of hysterectomies (supracervical, simple, radical, vaginal, laparoscopic)

Directed Studying Recommendations:

Web-based learning:

• Gynecological Cancer link
• Sexually Transmitted Diseases- updated information on diagnosis
  and treatment regimens through the CDC web-site
• American Cancer Society - this link brings you to page for medical
  professionals - choose link to specific GYN related cancers for information
• Virtual Hospital (patient education on Gyn topics)

Reviewing gynecology-related sample questions/answers to prepare for NBME shelf examination through uWise.

Completing the assignments in Canvas for that week's Wednesday faculty teaching sessions.