Fourth-Year Clinical Specialty Track

It is a big decision for the medical student to choose which specialty they want to practice in. During their third year at UNMC, they attend specialty-specific informational meetings and converse with the specialty track directors when trying to make this decision. The obstetrics and gynecology field is all about the healthcare of the female - delivering babies, providing healthcare for well and urgent visits, providing counseling on family planning, and performing routine and emergent surgery.

The final year of medical school is considered Phase 3 in the College of Medicine curriculum. During this year, the student applies to their desired residency programs, attends interviews, and completes rotations at different clinic and inpatient sites.

A complete list of senior courses, as well as the scheduling worksheet and senior elective handbook, is available via College of Medicine "Senior Courses".

Advanced Learning Opportunities

Residency Prep Course

The fourth-year medical students also participate in the Residency Preparatory Course at the end of their fourth year of medical school. They complete two weeks of sessions with the College of Medicine and then two weeks with the Dept. of OB-GYN, which consists of simulations and skills labs with department faculty. An example of sessions includes delivering bad news, perineal laceration repair, advanced suturing techniques, endometrial biopsy, intrauterine device insertion and removal, loop electrosurgical excision procedure, Bartholin cyst management, point of care ultrasound, high-fidelity simulations for postpartum hemorrhage, obstetric delivery, and eclampsia, as well as a cesarean section with a high-fidelity manikin and realistic pregnant abdomen.

Advanced Simulations

The fourth-year medical students may participate in the OB-GYN resident simulations, as well. Every July the department organizes a series of simulations and events that include the management of high-risk obstetric emergencies,  da Vinci robotic simulator hands-on practice, and we have five to six OB-GYN surgery representatives bring their equipment to the Davis Global Center so the residents and fourth-year medical students can interact with the equipment and become familiar with how to use it.

We also have quarterly simulations that occur on a Wednesday afternoon during dedicated education time that the fourth-year medical students are invited to attend. The topics are chosen by the residency program directors from a list in the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists education section and include high-fidelity simulations and hands-on sessions practicing surgical techniques.