Answer – We are the clinical experts for obstetrical management and GYN emergencies.
Duties may include:

• Care for unassigned inpatient OB and GYN patients
• Provide triage or OB ED services
• Provide GYN consultations for hospitalized patients and the main ED
• Oversee residents, fellows, midwives or advanced practice nurses
• Provide call coverage and L&D support: interpretation of EFM strips, stand-by for deliveries, perform amniotomies & sonograms, IUPC/FSE placement, monitoring of laboring patients for private OBs
• Serve as MFM extenders
• Function as a member and leader of the OB Rapid Response Team
• Surgically assist for other OBs or gynecologists
• Serve on patient safety and quality review committees
• Enforce quality metrics and evidence-based medicine

Answer – A laborist cares for OB patients on L&D.
Duties may also include covering triage or an OBED as well as caring for unassigned patients, but generally a laborist does not care for GYN patients. Laborists may be employed by the hospital or may be part of a large private practice group. An OB/GYN hospitalist takes care of both OB and GYN patients in the hospital. In general, the term OB hospitalist is preferred and recognized rather than the term laborist, however meaning and use of these terms can vary from institution to institution.

Answer – There are several employment models, such as:

• Faculty at an academic institution
• Employee of a hospital’s physician network
• Contracted employee directly with a hospital
• Employee of a large group that contracts with the hospital

Answer – This varies by region. Hospitalists may be paid a salary or an hourly wage. Benefits packages also vary by employer.

Answer – Fellowships provide extra training and skills in a focused hospital practice.
This includes honing skills in labor and delivery, management of emergencies, participation in hospital- based quality and safety committees, development and implementation of safety protocols, leading care teams, nursing education and participation in quality projects. Fellowship training also focuses on system-wide safety improvement mechanisms. These areas of focus have historically not been part of the residency training curriculum.

Answer – Stipends vary by region. The typical base stipends are at a PGY-5 level.
Moonlighting activities done outside the formal training schedule are also offered at some sites for fellows to earn additional compensation.

Answer-

• Generalists care for patients in a private or group practice setting and their primary clinical focus is in the office. Hospitalists typically do not have a private practice and practice solely in a hospital setting
• Hospitalists are experts in emergency care
• Hospitalists are involved in patient safety initiatives, quality improvement and the development of performance metrics. They also participate in and supervise mock simulation drills. These roles are optional for generalists
• Hospitalists provide call coverage for providers, enabling these providers to have an improved work-life balance and improved operational efficiency in the office. This coverage does not create competition for private practitioners since hospitalists do not have a private practice into which these patients can transfer
• Hospitalists provide 24/7 care for high-risk maternal fetal transport patients and can serve as MFM extenders
• Hospitalists provide support, education and mentorship to L&D nurses, residents and medical students. They also serve as liaisons between providers and hospital administrators by virtue of their quality improvement and patient safety hospital-based focus and practice

Answer – OB/GYN hospitalist fellowships are not ACGME accredited and vary in duration from 1-2 years.
Currently, the categorization of this fellowship would be equivalent to fellowships in minimally invasive GYN surgery. Hospitalist fellowships have not been granted formal subspecialty status by ABOG yet.

Answer – These fellowship opportunities are for candidates who are interested in careers and leadership roles in hospital medicine.
They also provide physicians desiring a hospital or facility-based practice the opportunity to obtain a hospitalist position much more quickly, since most institutions require board certification along with 5 years of post-training experience before a candidate is considered for an OB/GYN hospitalist position. Leading management companies across the country have agreed that this training demonstrates a commitment to excellence in hospital medicine and fellowship-trained candidates are qualified for hospitalist positions.