Books, Q-Banks, and Studying Resources
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- Case Files: Obstetrics & Gynecology was pivotal in my preparation! The cases are high-yield with good explanations and generally pretty good questions.
- Textbooks:
- We used Hacker and Moore’s Essentials of Obstetrics & Gynecology. I bought the 5th edition rather than the current one to save a few $$$, which wound up being fine.
- Some programs like the Beckmann and Ling text. A free PDF of the 6th ed. is here (current is the 8th ed.): https://blog.utp.edu.co/doctorgaviria/files/2015/11/Obstetrics-Ginecology-ACOG.pdf
- I liked SOAP for Obstetrics and Gynecology for the wards. It’s a handy reference that tells you the questions to ask, physical exam findings, and how to construct an assessment and plan for ~100 different common conditions.
- ACOG Practice Bulletins are good sources to read up on specific topics for the wards.
- Q-banks: UWorld, UWise (APGO’s Q-bank, provided to students by many med schools)
Podcasts/Videos
- The best podcast is Dr. Tonya Wright’s The OBG Med Student (Apple). Dr. Wright is the clerkship director at Penn State’s med school, and she recorded twenty-six 10-20 minute episodes with residents and faculty members from Penn State Hershey Medical Center. Each episode uses a great case-based Q&A back-and-forth format that is interesting and engaging. This podcast is specifically focused on APGO learning objectives that are frequently tested on the SHELF exam. It is specifically made for med students. Give it a listen!
- Online MedEd is well-received, but I didn’t use it much.
- APGO (Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics) has produced a library of over 50 short (5-10 min) animated YouTube videos about high-yield medical student learning objectives. They’re pretty engaging and well done. Fire up Brave Browser (so you don’t have to watch ads and can earn some crypto) and tune in: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLy35JKgvOASnHHXni4mjXX9kwVA_YMDpq
- Only two episodes but these have a nice intro to routine OB visits and fetal monitoring: https://doctorssurvivingmedicine.com/category/obgynbasics_podcast/
- The OB/Gyn Podcast is a bit too long-winded and historical in my opinion, but might be good if you have a long car ride and want something to listen to: http://www.obgyn.fm/.
Mnemonics/Concepts
“VEAL CHOP” was a good way to remember fetal heart tracings. This is part of fetal heart monitoring to measure fetal distress. You look at the fetal heart rate (top trace) and uterine pressure (bottom) in these traces.
One of my attendings broke down hypertension in pregnancy like this:
Lastly, for maternal-fetal physiology, remember:
- Most stuff goes up like 30%
- Everything goes up even more if there are twins, triplets, etc (multiple gestation)
- Blood plasma volume goes up even more than Hgb, often leading to a dilutional anemia picture (even though the total RBC mass is up).
Skills to know/learn
- OR: know how to:
- Get your gloves up, scrub, get bed in/out of room at beginning/end of case, help roll patient to/from bed to table
- Skills:
- putting in/taking out Foley catheter,
- suturing,
- knot-tying
- generally two-hand or one-hand; instrument tying isn’t as common.
- The French knot is used to close large skin incisions (e.g., after C-sections), which is able to be buried under the skin, but you probably won’t be expected to learn that one even though it’s easy.
- Nice, concise history
- All OB patients should be asked the four questions — vaginal bleeding, loss of fluids, contractions, and have you felt the baby move? (note quickening is ~20 wks for primigravida and a few weeks earlier for multips).
Med School Beast 