The definition of a gynecologist is a doctor who specializes in women’s diseases. Nowadays you can also call a gynecologist a jack of all trades, because the profession is very versatile. You may be dealing with a gynecologist if you have complications during your pregnancy or they may be guiding you with fertility problems. In addition, they are concerned with abnormalities and diseases of the female genital organs.

Study

You don’t just become a gynecologist. A long study precedes it. A gynecologist started studying medicine at university after high school. This training lasts 6 years, during which internships are regularly done in hospitals, nursing homes, but also, for example,  a general practice. In this way they quickly gain practical experience. Various subjects are discussed during the study. Courses such as, gynecology, obstetrics, neurology and medical informatics. When these 6 years have been completed, the graduate is a certified medical practitioner. After studying medicine, the person can apply for a training position in a teaching hospital in the gynecology department to continue in the specialization. There is not always an immediate place for a gynecologist in training, so sometimes the medical doctors have to work as a general doctor in the gynecology / obstetrics department or they can engage in scientific research while waiting for a training place. The specialization in gynecology also lasts 6 years.

Profession
As a gynecologist you mainly deal with women in the age category 20 to 70 years. Yet you can also have to deal with small children or with men as patients.
After completing the training to become a gynecologist, you can sub specialize. There are doctors who, for example, only work at the obstetrics outpatient clinic. This often occurs in large hospitals, where many gynecologists are at work. There are various sub-areas within the profession. For example:
• Obstetrics, where women give birth (usually with a medical complication)
• Fertilization, here gynecologists work with patients who have fertility problems
• Gynecology, for example, menstrual disorders and hormone treatments are treated here
• Urogynecology, for help with incontinence problems
• Oncology, research for malignant diseases such as cancer in the female organs

Gynecologists are also always involved in scientific research.
The salaries of gynecologists can differ. An independent specialist will have a different pay slip than someone employed by a hospital. Gynecologists receive allowances for management tasks, for example, and they can receive accessibility allowance.

Continuing to learn

A gynecologist is never done with learning. Continuous research keeps inventing new things based on results. Treatment methods are changing and the working methods of hospitals are changing. Gynecologists are required to attend further training courses every year. In addition, it is possible to change the career path itself by teaching at the university or by, for example, taking on a management position. There are also gynecologists who choose to fill a board position in addition to their job as a gynecologist. If you choose a career as a gynecologist, you never know how your career will go and the profession is therefore anything but boring.