Obstetrician-Gynecologist

Obstetrician-gynecologists, often referred to as OB-GYNs, are physicians who, after medical school, have met additional academic requirements, set by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, that prepare them to manage pregnancy and childbirth, as well as to diagnose and treat medical conditions associated with women’s reproductive systems.

With their broad knowledge of women’s health, OB-GYNs become invaluable members of the medical teams who care for the country’s underserved populations. Areas of expertise are numerous and diverse, and can include cancer; endocrinology; health during pregnancy and delivery; infertility; operative gynecology; sexually transmitted diseases; urinary tract infections; and other acute and chronic medical conditions.

Lisa Jeffries, MD
Serving Women Who Would Be Left Out in the Cold

In Boulder, Colorado, NHSC Loan Repayor Lisa Jeffries is grateful for the opportunity to serve the city’s financially strapped segment—women working in the affluent city but struggling to simply afford health care.

We asked Jeffries about the NHSC:

What difference has the NHSC made in your community?
By helping to support the People’s Clinic here in Boulder, where patients pay only what they can afford on a sliding scale, the NHSC plays an important role in providing care to a great number of uninsured patients. This clinic allows many women—who otherwise wouldn’t bother with prenatal care—to obtain such care, which can decrease morbidity and mortality in them, as well as in their children. Not only are babies born healthier, but they are also started on the right path toward appropriate immunization and other pediatric care.

What difference has the NHSC made in your professional life?
The NHSC softened the financial blow from working here doing what I want to do: serving the underserved. I was always interested in underserved medicine—in medical school, I went to Africa and spent time during my second year working in an inner-city Denver health center. It is so different working in our clinic, where people are so grateful for the medical care they might not otherwise receive, than working in another health facility serving Boulder’s wealthy women.