A National Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Education Curriculum: National Needs Assessment

While standardized national residency education curricula have been successfully implemented in other specialties, there is no such curriculum in Obstetrics & Gynecology (Ob/Gyn). With this study, we sought to evaluate: (1) the current state of and satisfaction with resident didactic education (2) perceptions regarding centralization and standardization of resident didactic education and (3) the need for a standardized national Ob/Gyn residency education curriculum. In 2019, a web-based needs assessment survey was administered to residents and program leadership from all 267 Ob/Gyn residency programs nationwide. Main outcomes were reported with descriptive statistics. A total of 782 (83 program directors, 46 assistant program directors, and 653 residents) participants completed the survey. Respondents represented a diverse range of regions, program types, and program sizes. Almost all (97%) participants agreed or strongly agreed that residents nationwide should have equal access to high quality Ob/Gyn educational resources. Further, 92% agreed or strongly agreed that core resources should be centrally located. A majority (78%) agreed or strongly agreed that there is a need for a national Ob/Gyn residency education curriculum. Our results demonstrate a perceived need for a centrally located, standardized, national residency education curriculum in Ob/Gyn.