AdventHealth for Women establishes new Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program to train future physician leaders and help combat shortages

In July 2023, AdventHealth for Women welcomed its first residents for a newly accredited Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB/GYN) graduate medical education (GME) program. Four physicians began the Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program, which earned initial accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in 2022. The program expands GME opportunities available at AdventHealth for Women, including physician residencies in diagnostic radiology, general pediatrics, general surgery, internal medicine and orthopedic surgery.

AdventHealth for Women’s OB/GYN Residency program was designed to provide clinical learning experiences in comprehensive obstetrics, gynecology and ambulatory women’s health care as well as the sub-specialties of complex family planning, urogynecology and reconstructive pelvic surgery, gynecologic oncology, maternal-fetal medicine, minimally invasive gynecologic surgery, and reproductive endocrinology and infertility.

“There is currently a large OB/GYN shortage, particularly in Florida and especially in Orlando,” explains AdventHealth OB/GYN and Residency Program Director Sarah Weaver, MD. “New residency programs are a way to generate more OB/GYNs and help combat this shortage. Ultimately, this program will help provide women in our community with increased access to healthcare that may otherwise be unavailable or delayed due to national OB/GYN shortages.”

AdventHealth for Women’s OB/GYN department performs 5,000 deliveries a year and serves as a high-risk OB referral center for other Central Florida AdventHealth hospitals that perform an additional 7,000 deliveries annually. In addition, AdventHealth for Women is a Placenta Accreta Spectrum (PAS) referral center, providing specialty care for this high-risk pregnancy condition that typically requires a hysterectomy at the time of cesarean section. Furthermore, gynecologic surgeons who perform 1,500 hysterectomies each year and a Gynecologic Oncology Fellowship Program will expose AdventHealth OB/GYN residents to a high volume and variety of gynecologic surgeries and surgical techniques.

In addition to their clinical experiences, the residents receive formal education through didactics and simulation, including monthly obstetric or gynecology simulations utilizing high-fidelity models. Simulated surgical procedures are designed to make residents more efficient in the operating room while obstetric emergency simulations help prepare the residents to deal with these scenarios calmly and efficiently when they occur.

“Due to the breadth of training experiences offered, our program will prepare residents for independent practice or subspecialty fellowship depending on their preference,” comments Dr. Weaver.