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Postgraduates

Getting training to provide abortions after residency is not as uncommon as you may think. Many current abortion providers are decades into their family medicine practice when they decide that they want to provide abortions, and are able to get trained. It is true that getting trained during residency is easier in terms of built in time with elective months, and the possibility of having your malpractice already covered. That being said, there are many options to be trained in abortions after graduating residency, especially if you live in a low resourced area.

Fellowships

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There are two official options for family medicine fellowships in family planning: the RHAP fellowship and the TEACH Leadership Fellowship. If you are also interested in Obstetrics care, then the University of New Mexico’s Maternal Child and Reproductive Health Fellowship may be a great option for you as they do include access to abortion care and training. Additionally, if you are interested in staying for a Chief year at your program, then you may have the option of doing an unofficial Family Planning fellowship as a part of your Chief year curriculum, if your residency program is supportive of this. 

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  • Reproductive Health Care and Advocacy Fellowship

    • Length: 1 year

    • Locations: NYC, NY, Boston, MA, Seattle, WA, Ann Arbor, MI, New Brunswick, NJ

    • Emphasis: 

      • Clinical - will spend one year as “trainer in training” and spend ~20 days at a high volume abortion site

      • Teaching - will give presentations during didactic sessions, work on academic projects for presentation and publication

      • Advocacy - participate in AAFP and other organization related advocacy, apply for Physicians for Reproductive Health Leadership Training Academy

    • Salary: varies by location

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  • TEACH Leadership Fellowship

    • Length: 1 year, part time 

    • Locations: Flexible - part time Bay Area employment preferred

    • Emphasis: 

      • Leadership training/Advocacy - apply for Physicians for Reproductive Health Leadership Training Academy and advocate with state and national legislators 

      • Faculty Development - be developed as a master trainer-in-training to teach hands on skills and didactics for clinicians in training, work on curriculum improvements through the TEACH program 

      • Clinical exposure - contraception, first trimester pregnancy termination, ultrasounding

      • Research 

    • Who can apply: preference for recent residency graduation, application is open to graduates of the CREATE program and/or by invitation. 

    • Salary: small stipend 

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  • Maternal Child & Reproductive Health Fellowship at the University of New Mexico

    • Length: 2 years, full time

    • Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico

    • Emphasis: 

      • Clinical - Care of complicated Obstetric patients, C-sections, Medical and Surgical Abortions, NICU, Operative vaginal delivery, tubal ligation

      • Teaching - Precept family medicine patients in clinic and on the Labor and Delivery Unit

    • Salary: $62,000

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  • Chief Year

    • Many Family Medicine residency programs offer a chief year option where you do administrative tasks to support the residency, and become involved in precepting and teaching residents. Think of it as a junior faculty position. If programs are amenable, you could consider incorporating abortion training into your chief year. You would have to follow much of the processes delineated in the residency section to establish with a local (or out of state) abortion clinic, but many Chief Years offer the opportunity to do away electives, so this could be an option for you. Additionally, you could use this as an opportunity to strengthen miscarriage management and abortion care into your residency’s didactic curriculum. You could also consider applying for the Physicians for Reproductive Health Leadership Training Academy. The Chief year is a great opportunity to experience medical education from a faculty level, as well as support your own professional development with interests of your choice.

Non-Fellowship Postgraduate Training Opportunities 

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Clinical Abortion Training Centers

  • This is a grant funded opportunity to train post-graduate providers in high volume clinics at 5 different high volume clinics around the US. The goal of this project is to provide hands on training to people who don’t have access through their program, with the ultimate goal of training people who would like to provide abortions in under resourced areas. 

  • Some financial assistance may be available, but is not guaranteed. Your malpractice will be covered through their malpractice insurance, so you do not need to get additional malpractice coverage. 

  • Apply at abortiontraining.org 

 

Midwest Access Project (MAP)

  • MAP has a long history of training providers who are already in practice. They have a strategic goal to identify healthcare professionals, who have a high motivation to provider comprehensive reproductive healthcare, including abortion care, to unserved or underserved patient populations. They provide observation or hands-on training at various sites throughout the region. The length of rotations is dependent on the professional goals of each trainee. 

  • The process is application based, and MAP offers a slot to about half of the people that apply. Prospective applicants are welcome to speak to MAP staff prior to applying. If your application was not accepted, MAP staff are available to share feedback about your application. 

  • If you have already gone through a MAP rotation, do not hesitate to apply for a second or third rotation. This is highly preferred. 

  • Please visit MAP’s Individual Clinical training website to learn more about the program and eligibility.

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