Rural Arizona Obstetrics

Rural Site:  Holy Cross Hospital

Location: Nogales, Arizona
Distance from Tucson:  65 miles (approximately one hour)
Physician Site Director:  Joel Block, MD

Nogales, located on the border with Mexico, is home to just over 20,000 people.  It is considered rural, underserved, and is largely Spanish speaking.  Holy Cross Hospital is the primary medical facility in this community.  An 80-bed facility, Holy Cross provides general medical/surgical services, 24-hour emergency care, rehabilitation, mammography, ultrasound, chemotherapy, hospice, home health and long-term care.  It is considered a Critical Access Hospital and part of the Carondelet Network that serves Tucson and Southern Arizona.  Physicians in this facility have consistently provided prenatal and delivery service to patients from both Nogales proper and Northern Mexico.  Residents participating in this rotation will work with several of the area physicians, some board-certified in OB/GYN and others in Family Medicine.  The majority of this rotation is spent on the labor and delivery unit, participating in both the care of those with prenatal concerns requiring evaluation in labor and delivery, as well as the management of those in active labor progressing to delivery. Experience with Cesarean-section assist may also be involved depending on the case.