Referring Providers
BIDMC welcomes physician referrals and the opportunity to provide excellent care for your patients.
Global & Community Health Programs
Global & Community Health Program
The Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology (OB/GYN) Division of Global & Community Health was established to build upon Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center's (BIDMC) longstanding commitment to service.
Grounded in the pillars of an academic medical institution — clinical care, medical education and research — our faculty seek to improve health outcomes and address health inequities in communities both locally and globally. Our researchers work collaboratively with our academic and community partners, with support from The Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology's (OB/GYN) Division of Research to conduct a variety of global and community research projects that advance the study and understanding of obstetrics and gynecology.
More About the Division
Global Health Program
As part of our department’s commitment to improving patient care and clinical outcomes, we positioned our team in various communities across the globe. We have a full-time clinician in Botswana who, in addition to overseeing the expansion of an OB/GYN residency training program, treats patients and provides critical OB/GYN care for those in need.
Community Health Program
The mission of the Community Health Program at BIDMC is to foster dialogue, research, education and advocacy among our affiliated community health centers to deliver the highest quality care to our patients. We promote health equity among our communities by identifying barriers our patients face, advocating for access to healthcare services, and building cultural consciousness, respect and understanding.
BIDMC’s commitment to community health is longstanding. Its affiliated health centers provide care to over 110,000 patients at multiple sites throughout Greater Boston. Our OB/GYN core faculty are based at federally qualified health centers:
Education & Training
We offer numerous opportunities for education and mentorship, including:
Global Health
- Mentored global or community health project opportunity for all residents
- BIDMC Global Health Training Scholarship for first-year residents to apply for to participate in a global health delivery course
- Second-year and third-year OB/GYN resident electives at Princess Marina Hospital in Gaborone, Botswana, or at other international sites with faculty supervision and support
Community Health
- Fourth-year medical student elective at BIDMC-affiliated community health centers
- OB/GYN resident continuity clinics at BIDMC-affiliated community health centers
In collaboration with Harvard Medical School and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, we also offer additional resources and a rich community of colleagues dedicated to global health and community health.
Botswana Global Health Program
Sub-Saharan Africa faces a severe shortage of OB/GYNs. While the Lancet Commission for Global Surgery recommends 20 OB/GYNs per 100,000 population, Botswana has only 40 OB/GYNs for a population of 2.3 million.
In 2016, we expanded our Division’s involvement in BIDMC’s Botswana Global Health Program by recruiting and supporting a full-time faculty member who is based in Botswana, providing clinical care and expanding medical education.
Most recently, our collaboration facilitated the launch of the first ever OB/GYN Master of Medicine (MMed) residency training program at the University of Botswana. This program helps to support clinical capacitation needs in Botswana by working with relevant local stakeholders and developing international collaborations to support subspecialty training. Additionally, our partnership supports in-country quality improvement and research programs addressing maternal health and cervical cancer screening and prevention programs.
U.S.-based OB/GYN residents also have the opportunity to participate in supervised clinical and research electives at this site. Learn more about the OB/GYN residency elective.
