Obstetrics Rotation: Recommended Books

[Guest Ian Wong]

Here's just some recommendations for both textbooks and ward books based on my experiences in this rotation. I don't claim to know what's best, but this is what I used for this rotation.

 

Recommended books for Obstetrics:

 

In your white coat pocket:

1) Tarascon Pharmacopeia

2) Maxwell's Quick Medical Reference

3) Sanford's Guide to Anti-Microbial Therapy

4) One of those little maternity wheels to calculate dates/LMP

5) On Call: Principles and Protocols ISBN: 0-7216-5079-1

 

At home so you can read up in your spare time (what spare time?)

 

6) Blueprints Obstetrics and Gynecology ISBN: 0632-04489-6

or

6) Beckmann's Obstetrics and Gynecology ISBN: 0781-72480-5

 

Tarascon, Maxwell's, and Sanford's should be de facto members of your white coat until you graduate med school, and probably still after that. Maxwell's will show you how to write a delivery note.

 

Keep On Call with you because just like in Surgery, you'll get pages from the nurses for low urine outputs, post-op fevers, etc. Unfortunately, On Call doesn't have protocols for some of the Obstetrics-specific stuff like pre-eclampsia/pregnancy-induced hypertension, nor how to actually deliver a baby! I found my residents were a good resource for those things, and I don't know of a good ward reference for that stuff. Perhaps Obstetrics On Call???

 

For further reading, use either Blueprints or Beckmann's as both are very good. Blueprints is more focussed and concise, but obviously lacks that n-th level of detail. If you are considering incorporating OB/Gyn into your practice, go for Beckmann. Otherwise, Blueprints is just the right amount of knowledge in a small enough package to be readable.

 

The major goal you should get out of Obstetrics is a good handle on pre-natal care; particularly if you are going into Obs or Family Medicine. You should have a good idea of prenatal tests as well as the dates in which they are done. Get good at things like birth control and contraception, STD's, etc.

 

You should also become very conversant with Obs lingo, as far as the GTPAL mnemonic is concerned, the assessment of the progress of labour, and of course, how to deliver a baby and the ensuing placenta.

 

For us, we had little to no exposure to the babies once they were out; there were pediatricians on call if there was any concern about the baby's health. As someone with a decided aversion to Obs (ENT is about as far away from Ob/GYN as you can get!), my level of confidence was knowing the above materials, and being fairly confident that if a pregnant lady suddenly started have contractions or going into labour, that I could coach her through it and deliver the baby if need be. I think if you can get that self-assurance out of your Obs rotation, you'll actually be of use, rather than a hinderance in an unexpected obstetrical emergency.

 

Ian

UBC, Med 4

[Guest Ian Wong]

Floating back to the top...

 

Ian