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The labor and delivery floor is a unique learning environment that poses challenges to teaching medical students, with a potentially detrimental effect on their evaluations of the obstetrics and gynecology clerkship. This article, from the "To the Point" series prepared by the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics Undergraduate Medical Education Committee, offers specific suggestions for improving undergraduate medical education in obstetrics with attention to student preparation, faculty development, nonphysician staff involvement, and patient education. Optimizing the learning environment in labor and delivery would improve student experiences and perceptions of our specialty., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision on Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization resulted in state-specific differences in abortion care access across the country. The primary concern in the obstetrics and gynecology education community has been the impact on resident and fellowship training programs. However, the impact on undergraduate medical education and the broad implications for future generations of physicians are crucial to address. It is estimated that 48% of matriculants to MD-granting medical schools will receive their medical education in the 26 states with significant abortion restrictions or bans. Undergraduate medical educators need to continue to adequately teach the basic science, clinical care, and population health outcomes of reproductive medicine, including pregnancy and abortion. In addition, students in states with more restrictions on abortion will have less or no clinical exposure, and those in states with few restrictions may be excluded due to overcrowding of learners from restricted states. Students' own health care also needs to be considered, as access to abortion care for themselves or their partners may create applicant pool demographic shifts by state as applicants consider options for where to pursue their medical education. It is important to ensure that teaching of foundational science of pregnancy, abortion, and reproductive health continues throughout the United States. Undergraduate and graduate medical educators will need to closely monitor the downstream impact of decreased clinical exposure of abortion. Further study of the personal health impact of abortion care access for medical students and awareness of the changing applicant pool demographics by state is needed., (Copyright © 2022 by the Association of American Medical Colleges.)

This article, from the "To the Point" series by the Undergraduate Medical Education Committee of the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics, is a guide for advising medical students applying to Obstetrics and Gynecology residency programs. The residency application process is changing rapidly in response to an increasingly complex and competitive atmosphere, with a wider recognition of the stress, expense, and difficulty of matching into graduate training programs. The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and societal upheaval make this application cycle more challenging than ever before. Medical students need reliable, accurate, and honest advising from the faculty in their field of choice to apply successfully to residency. The authors outline a model for faculty career advisors, distinct from mentors or general academic advisors. The faculty career advisor has detailed knowledge about the field, an in-depth understanding of the application process, and what constitutes a strong application. The faculty career advisor provides accurate information regarding residency programs within the specialty, helping students to strategically apply to programs where the student is likely to match, decreasing anxiety, expense, and overapplication. Faculty career advisor teams advise students throughout the application process with periodic review of student portfolios and are available for support and advice throughout the process. The authors provide a guide for the faculty career advisor in Obstetrics and Gynecology, including faculty development and quality improvement., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)