Saint Joseph Hospital OB-Gyn Residency
Our OB-Gyn Residency Program dates to 1949, making it the oldest OB-Gyn residency program in Denver. Saint Joseph Hospital has long been one of the busiest OB-Gyn units in the region, with over 4,000 deliveries per year.
About our program
Saint Joseph Hospital offers a training program with a community feel and the benefit of academic exposure due to the large volume of interesting and challenging patients. The volume and acuity of the hospital produce well-trained generalists, in addition to well-prepared fellows. In recent years, we have had several graduates go on to MIS (2), REI (2), urogynecology (1), FP (1), and MFM (3) fellowships.
Possibly one of the biggest advantages of training at Saint Joseph Hospital is the breadth of experience, as we work with so many different OB-Gyn practitioners.
The GYN surgical experience consistently ranks among the top in the country. As there are no fellowship programs at Saint Joseph Hospital, residents benefit from direct contact with subspecialists both in the clinic and in the operating room. Residents get excellent minimally invasive surgical experience, including vaginal, laparoscopic, and robotic training. Additionally, fourth year residents have two 5-week rotations in Minimally Invasive Surgery, where they specifically focus on improving laparoscopic technique. The hospital also recently upgraded to new DaVinci XI robotic surgery consoles. Residents get regular hands-on experience with the robot and can practice with the robotic trainer, especially on urogynecology and oncology cases.
What sets us apart
A message from our program director
Here at St. Joe’s, our faculty is passionate about guiding the next generation of Ob/Gyn physicians on their professional journey. We are dedicated to providing a personalized training experience that aligns with your unique career aspirations. Our program is built on a foundation of strong clinical care with a focus on patient safety, evidence-based practice, and interdisciplinary teamwork, creating a rich and supportive learning environment.
We pride ourselves on offering the full depth and breadth of the specialty, blending academic rigor with the hands-on mentorship that our community-based model provides. Our goal is to ensure you are exceptionally prepared for whatever path you choose, whether that is becoming a well-rounded generalist, a leader in advocacy, or matching into a competitive fellowship.
Beyond clinical excellence, we are deeply committed to your personal wellness and to fostering a collaborative community where you can thrive. We are incredibly proud of our residents and faculty and hope you get a sense of our team's supportive spirit as you explore our program.
Kristin Powell, MD, FACOG
Program Director
Program contact
Connect with us
Where we train
Saint Joseph Hospital partners with Kaiser Colorado, so resident physicians care for Kaiser patients in the hospital, in Kaiser clinics, and at their ambulatory surgical centers. Saint Joseph Hospital is also a coveted place for private physicians to deliver and operate. We deliver and operate with many private practitioners, which is a huge advantage when making career choices later in residency.
In addition, the resident physicians act as backup for the Certified Nurse Midwife group that delivers at the hospital. As consultants to the midwives, we get more experience with high-risk pregnancies and a higher volume of deliveries. We also act as backup to The Birth Center of Denver, Denver’s only hospital-owned freestanding birth center. We take pride in getting our patients the birth experience they desire and learn a lot about this from our CNM partners.
Saint Joseph Hospital offers generous charity funding for many of our lower-income, uninsured, or underinsured patients. We see these patients in our residency clinic, and the charitable funding from our hospital allows us to get them the treatment they need. These partnerships reflect our mission: to improve the health of the communities we serve, especially the poor and vulnerable.
Program details
Everything you need to know about our residency program and what to expect
Advocacy
Saint Joe’s is committed to advocacy work on a local and national level. Each year our residents are relieved of clinical duties to attend the Colorado State Lobby Day at the Colorado State Capitol, a few blocks away from the hospital, where we meet with local representatives to advocate for state-wide legislature to better women’s health. In past years, we have lobbied to extend FMLA coverage for better maternity leave options and improved contraceptive coverage.
Our residents work closely with ACOG Colorado, who each year generously sponsor residents from both St Joe’s and CU to attend the national ACOG Congressional Leadership Conference. This conference is an excellent opportunity to learn the basics of advocacy, how-to lobby sessions, and ultimately meet our state senators and representatives to lobby for national bills affecting women’s health. In past years, we have lobbied for and helped pass legislation to establish funding for Maternal Mortality Review Committees in all 50 states to address our nation's increasing maternal mortality rate, to extend Medicaid coverage for pregnancy through one year postpartum, and to increase NIH funding for research into women’s health diseases.
Rotation schedule
The overall educational objectives of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program at Saint Joseph Hospital are based on Educational Objectives: Core Curriculum in Obstetrics and Gynecology as published by the Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology. This format is reviewed with each new edition and continues to allow for the training of physicians in the primary and preventive care of women, pregnancy, and the female reproductive system.
We expect our physicians to be able to evaluate the general healthcare needs of women, and deviations from normal in women so that they can appropriately refer to other specialists. We strive for compliance with all aspects of the RRC Requirements.
Admission is highly competitive, and applicants must have passed USMLE or COMLEX Step 1. Applications are submitted via ResidencyCAS, and interviews are scheduled in November and December.
Our program uses only ResidencyCAS for the application process, which requires electronic submissions. For any questions related to using ResidencyCAS, please contact their support team. You can find more information about ResidencyCAS here.
The following information is required for your application to be accepted for review:
- Personal statement
- Dean's letter
- Medical school transcript
- USMLE Step 1 or COMLEX Pass on first attempt
- Three letters of recommendation. One of these must be from a practicing, board-certified OB-Gyn physician.
If you have postgraduate training, a letter of recommendation and/or evaluation from the program director is required.
Please note that it is a requirement of our program for residents to be licensed by the State of Colorado, Board of Medical Examiners by the end of the second year of training. The Colorado Board website has further information on this requirement.
We offer a competitive salary and full range of benefits including:
- Generous health care package for residents and their families
- 401k retirement plan
- Malpractice insurance
- Paid time off for vacation and sick time
- Education fund
- and more!
More details are available in the document linked below.
We like to think of our residency as a family.
We love spending time together outside of work for holidays, birthdays, weddings, or just because. We are excited that you are considering joining our family here at Saint Joe's!
Here at Saint Joe's, we have many traditions that make our residency special. For example, every year, each class gets their dedicated class weekend off, allowing for a class trip altogether. There's also the long-standing tradition of post-night shift brunch on Friday mornings during the night's rotation, which is something we all look forward to each week.
In the fall, we hold our annual resident retreat where all the residents and attendings have the opportunity to spend time together outside of the clinical setting. In the past, we have done ropes courses, rock climbing, and trampoline parks. We typically also spend time in a cabin in the mountains afterward and end the night with our tradition of a themed costume party.
In the spring, we have our annual "Spring Fling." This residency tradition is a special event where we all dress up and gather with family, friends, alumni, and faculty to celebrate and honor the graduating class.
The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology welcomes medical students from accredited U.S. or Canadian medical schools who are strongly considering OB/GYN as a career. The rotations are four weeks long and include both inpatient and outpatient care. Students work closely with house staff to ensure sufficient patient contact. Students attend all OB/GYN educational conferences.
We accept students starting July 1 through January 31. We will accept applications starting January 2nd through May 1st and will alert all students of their application status before June 1. We will accept applications through the VSLO program. Please contact us directly if you have any barriers to applying through this program. We will also accept applications emailed directly to the program.
Due to Colorado law, to rotate at our institution, all students must have a Workman's Compensation policy provided by their school. Email Jennifer.libra@imail.org with any questions.
Our faculty and residents
Meet our team of talented faculty members and our current classes of residents
Living in Denver
Denver is a wonderful place for residents and fellows to live thanks to its proximity to the Rocky Mountains, as well as being in the heart of a vibrant city with world-class amenities. Additionally, our trainees are part of a small and dedicated work family. The community we have built among our attending physicians, residents, fellows, and staff makes our program both incredibly supportive and incredibly strong.