Women’s Health Scholar Certificate

The Women's Health Scholar Certificate Program, established in 2006, provides concentrated experiences in women's health spanning research, clinical training, and community outreach. It is jointly sponsored by the FOCUS program and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Below is a brief outline of the four components necessary for completion of a Women's Health Scholar Certificate. Since the first component, the Women's Health Intensive, involves summer between the first and second year of medical school, it is important to consider this opportunity by late Spring of the first year in order to be able to complete all four components. For more information, please contact: Patricia Scott.

Goal: To provide concentrated experiences in women's health spanning research, clinical training and community outreach.

Four Requirements: << download to print >>

It is the student's responsibility to notify Susan Primavera within the month following completion of any of the four program components below, in order to have credit applied toward this Certificate.

I) Women's Health Intensive Summer Experience
6 to 8 weeks during the summer between first and second year.
Choose one of the following two options:

A. Bridging the Gaps (BTG): Community Internship Program <link> (at a women’s health/maternal child/related site)

Please contact: Mary Ellen Bradley

Required reporting handled through the BTG program.


B. Women’s Health Research Project
Find a mentor- Create a proposal- Obtain approval. See examples of mentors(not necessarily current) listed here.

For additional guidance about research opportunities and for approval of your project idea/proposal,
Please contact: Kurt Barnhart MD MSCE    

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Required reporting (for option B)

To obtain credit for this component, within the month following completion of this 7 week intensive, please notify: Susan Primavera.

II) Women's Health Seminar Attendance
12 seminars attended between 1st year and mid-December of final year of medical school (minimum requirement)

Seminar requirements can be completed through attendance at Grand Rounds in the Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Endocrinology, Medicine, Center for Research on Reproduction and Women’s Health, and other departments/divisions focused on women’s health issues, as well as relevant FOCUS Lunchtime Seminars. Additionally, any seminars, presentations or meetings pertaining to women’s health at any location (e.g. professional meetings and societies) will meet this requirement. Attendance must be tracked on the grid per below.

For more information and to be placed on email notification list for ObGyn Grand Rounds,
Please contact: Marian Rossi

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Required Reporting

At the end of each semester, students must submit a detailed list of all seminars attended (see grid above that includes date, presenter(s), seminar title, location, and brief description of each) to Marian Rossi.

To obtain credit for this component, within the month following completion of 12 seminars, please notify: Susan Primavera.

III) Elective in Women's Health
1 month – choose one of the following 3 options

Requirement: Completion of Obstetrics & Gynecology clerkship.
(see below for required reporting forms)

For information and to make arrangements to participate in any of the electives below,
Please contact: Roz Levit

A. Penn Health for Women at Radnor
Coordinators: Dr. Ann Honebrink,  Director of Penn Health for Women, and Dr. Allison Oler, internist

Description:  Penn Health for Women is an interdisciplinary program dedicated to providing the highest quality health care to women of all ages. Comprehensive services are provided in one convenient location by a team of gynecologists, obstetricians, internists, pediatric & adolescent gynecologist, urogynecologist, reproductive endocrinologists, breast surgeon, psychologists, and nutritionist.  Special programs including yoga, Pilates, weight control & sleep disorders. Close collaborative relationship with other available services on site such as radiology, dermatology, cardiology and GI.

Objective:  To expose the student to multi-disciplinary, collaborative approaches to primary health care for women.  Students will have an opportunity to participate in patient care with different team members as well as meet with the Director of Operations and Patient Services and the practice manager to gain an appreciation of management issues.

Goals:

  • To understand the benefits of a multi-disciplinary approach to Women’s Health care
  • To understand the components of appropriate preventive care for women
  • To appreciate the administrative challenges and benefits of operating a multi-disciplinary ambulatory program

Availability: All months except July, August and October.
Students interested in doing this elective may contact Roz Levit to make arrangements.

B. Women’s and Children’s Health Services at Pennsylvania Hospital
Coordinator: Dr. Jack Ludmir, Chair of ObGyn at Pennsylvania Hospital

Description: Women’s and Children’s Health Services (WCHS) is a not-for profit organization located on the Pennsylvania Hospital campus dedicated to providing health care services to women of all ages from our community and surrounding areas. Most of our patients are underserved and enjoy coming to WCHS because of our reputation for excellence in a caring environment. Health services include: family planning, prenatal care, colposcopy and adolescent gynecology. The care is provided by a team of physicians, nurses, social workers, and nutritionists.  Recently, WCHS has been working together with “Puentes de Salud.” This is a voluntary organization of Penn medical students, nurses and physicians, providing routine gynecologic care and prenatal care to the growing community of Mexican immigrants in South Philadelphia who are otherwise unable to get access to health care.

Objective: To familiarize the student to gynecologic and obstetric issues faced by women from underserved and diverse populations. The student will have the opportunity to be an active participant in the care of these women, and have exposure to the challenges and dilemmas in providing health care to them.

Availability: Students interested in doing this elective may contact Roz Levit to make arrangements.

C. Family Planning
Coordinators: Drs. Cori Schreiber and Steve Sondheimer, Director of Family Planning

Description:  Penn Family Planning and Pregnancy Loss Center provide a full range of contraceptive choices, option counseling, as well as medications and surgical abortion care.

Objectives:  To expose students to family planning service in the Title X Family Planning Program and abortion services in the Family Planning and Pregnancy Loss Program.  Students will participate in patient care, as well as meet with counselors, lawyers, and others involved in the provision of abortion service in Philadelphia.

Goals:

  • To understand each of the contraceptive choices available, including benefits, efficacy, counseling issues, and contraindications.
  • To understand options counseling and its components.
  • To understand the components of the Pennsylvania Abortion Control Act.
  • To learn about abortion services in Pennsylvania and Philadelphia.
  • To understand the components of medications and surgical abortion. 

Availability: Students interested in doing this elective may contact Roz Levit to make arrangements.

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Required reporting at completion of any of the elective options above:

To obtain credit for this component, within the month following completion of the one month elective, please contact Susan Primavera.

IV) Women’s Health Scholarly Pursuit Project
3 months*

Find a mentor - Create a proposal - Obtain approval.

For general information about this component and the FOCUS Fellowship,
please contact: Patricia Scott

For guidance about research opportunities and for approval of your project idea/proposal,
please contact: Hillary R. Bogner MD MSCE

* The six-month FOCUS Medical Student Fellowship in Women’s Health may be used to fulfill this requirement. A list of faculty with women's health-related projects and with prior interest in mentoring students is here ( Note: this is for reference only and is not necessarily current) and you can scroll to prior fellowships to see other ideas for projects here.

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Required reporting

To obtain credit for this component, within the month following completion of the scholarly pursuit project, please contact Susan Primavera.

*Within the month following completion of any of the four program components above, students must notify Susan Primavera in order to receive credit toward this Certificate.