Some Mountain West states are losing OB-GYNs and looking for solutions to fill the gap. This comes as rural delivery units close their doors and providers leave states amid the passage of abortion bans.
Idaho and Wyoming are investing in education programs for family medicine physicians to help address the expanding issue of maternity care deserts.
Family physicians already perform a lot of deliveries, but they don’t always have the surgical skills, like OB-GYNs, to do operations like C-sections. That’s according to Dr. Beth Robitaille, a family doctor who helps lead the medical education programs at the University of Wyoming.
“It's when things go wrong that you want people who have the training and skills to intervene quickly,” Robitaille said.
That’s why she said the University of Wyoming will now offer a specific OB track to students training to be family doctors in Cheyenne. A similar program is already being offered in Casper.
Robitaille said family doctors are especially well suited for rural places.
“We are jack[s]-of-all-trades,” Robitaille said. “We call it ‘cradle to grave.’”
Idaho is also investing in education programs for family doctors. The legislature passed a measure this year calling for the state to prioritize OB fellowships, a year-long program for family doctors after they complete their three-year residencies. Idaho medical residents who enter this fellowship would get more experience than in Wyoming’s OB track, but they wouldn’t be full-on OB-GYNs.
A fellowship is currently offered in Boise, but another one could start up in eastern Idaho, according to Dr. Ted Epperly, the CEO and president of Full Circle Heath, a teaching health center.
“ I truly am a believer that our legislature wants a positive solution to this problem,” Epperly said.
He said leaders are also looking to certified midwives to help fill gaps and potentially creating an OB-GYN residency program. Residency programs aren’t currently available in Idaho, Wyoming or Montana, so medical students often go to Washington for their education.
The OB-GYN shortage has intensified in Idaho since the state banned abortion in 2022. A new study says, as of December, Idaho had 35% fewer OB-GYNs than before the law went into effect.
“We've had to have some transfers out of state for women that need further care,” Epperly said. “We've had delays in timely care for women.”
Wyoming’s near-toal abortion bans have been blocked in court, for now, but Robitaille said the laws have still factored into doctors’ decisions to live in Wyoming, especially younger people.
Rural areas around the Mountain West are also short on OB-GYNs because hospital delivery units are closing due to a lack of workers, funding and patients.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
