Welcome from the Chair

Thank your interest in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.  I am very proud of our exceptional faculty and resident staff and their accomplishments in our mission areas of patient care, research, education and community outreach.  Our research programs in Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Reproductive Endocrinology and Gynecologic Oncology are robust and continue to gain the department recognition at the national and international level with total grant funding of over 3 million dollars.

Our educational program continues to thrive as evidenced by our recent receipt of 4 years full accreditation by the Residency Review Committee of the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education and approval to increase the size of our Residency Training Program to 5 Residents per year.  Our excellence in education is also reflected in the large number of students (11 from the Class of 2010 and 15 from the Class of 2011) who chose OB/GYN as a career, several of whom remained in our own residency training program.

With respect to our clinical activities the Gynecologic Oncology Division remains a full member of Gynecology Oncology Group (GOG), and our Reproductive Endocrinology Division, a member of the NIH Reproductive Medicine Network, continues to have superior results from their In-Vitro Fertilization Program (based on data from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technologies) which places them among the top programs in the region and in the country and has an internationally recognized program for the management of patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).  Maternal-Fetal Medicine continues to serve as a resource for high risk mothers for all of central Pennsylvania and recently instituted a telemedicine facility at one of our satellite offices, while providing state of the art prenatal diagnosis, genetics and ultrasound services, including a fully accredited first trimester nuchal translucency screening program. We also have an ABOG approved 3-year fellowship in Maternal Fetal Medicine that contributes to the continued scholarship, research and clinical activities in that division.  We have also initiated a Minimally Invasive Surgery Program that is unparalleled in the region. All of these activities have resulted in a record year for Ambulatory visits, Operating Room cases and Deliveries.  Building upon these successes has allowed for the addition of the Division of Urogynecology and Minimally Invasive Surgery that has unparalleled expertise in these areas to the Central Pennsylvania region. This division has made great strides and has established a one year fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery approved by the AAGL and in affiliation with the Society of Reproductive Surgeons.

I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge all of the support that we receive from our Hospital Administration, our College of Medicine, and our Nurses.  Without this support it would not be possible to achieve these goals.  Likewise, all of the support staff that contributes to the day to day operations of the Department – administrative assistants, billing and coding personnel, operations directors and numerous others makes it possible for us to achieve this kind of success.  I trust that your visit to our web site will provide evidence of the enthusiasm and commitment of our Department to provide the best in Health Care services for the Women of Pennsylvania, and the best in research and education for our next generation of physicians.

John T. Repke, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.
University Professor and Chairman
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Penn State University College of Medicine
Obstetrician-Gynecologist-In-Chief
The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center