For example, a traditional OB/gyn sees patients in an office 4-5 days per week, in addition to doing gynecological surgeries and procedures both in the hospital and in the office, plus performing deliveries. A laborist would work a set schedule on 12 to 24 hour shifts, for a total of about 36-48 hours worked per week. Therefore, a laborist on a 24 hour shift schedule would only work two shifts per week.
Simply put, a laborist is to OB/gyn physicians what hospitalists are to internal medicine and primary care physicians. Laborists allow traditional obstetrician/gynecologists to focus on their office practice and office-based procedures and patients, while the laborists can focus entirely on delivering babies in the hospital. The theory is that the division of labor (no pun intended) allows for increased efficiencies in both office patient care and hospital care.
There is no additional training an obstetrician/gynecologist must complete in order to practice as a laborist. However, the pay is slightly above that of a traditional ob/gyn physician, especially when you factor in the amount of hours worked, proportionate to the salary earned. Since laborists are a relatively new trend in healthcare, there is not extensive data on compensation specific to laborists. However, anecdotal information points towards laborists earning the same or more than traditional obstetrician/gynecologists, for fewer hours of work.
As of 2009, the laborist trend does not seem to have caught on in all hospitals. Therefore, the demand for laborists is not as high as it is for hospitalists or for traditional obstetrician/gynecologists.
