14 minute read
LEADERSHIP
// GOVERNORS' VANTAGE POINT INSIGHTS
from a DIALOGUE with ACG’s WOMEN GOVERNORS
ACG PRESIDENT DR. SUNANDA KANE
invited the College’s eight female Governors to join her for a conversation in April in Washington, DC, during the ACG Board of Governors Fly-in visits to Capitol Hill.
The College celebrates the leadership and contributions of all the Governors and particularly seeks to increase the visibility of ACG’s women Governors among the membership. The genesis for this session grew from the strong, clear sense expressed by Dr. Kane and Past President Dr. Carol Burke—and echoed by Chair of the Board of Governors Dr. Neil Stollman and Vice Chair Dr. Patrick Young—that the College should aim to increase participation by women in the Board of Governors.
Dr. Kane invited the group to share their experiences as women in GI and as ACG Governors. She asked them for tips and thoughts on ways female gastroenterologists can become more involved in ACG and see the Board of Governors as a path to participation and leadership within the College. The wideranging conversation covered some of the critical challenges facing those who want to get more involved in ACG and other professional organizations, generating some actionable insights from the group.
THE IMPORTANCE OF NETWORKING & MENTORSHIP
Key themes of the discussion included the importance of networking and the impact of mentoring on careers in medicine and
GI. According to Dr. Dayna Early: “Mentoring is a really big issue. If you see a woman who has balanced her life successfully then you feel like you can do it too. That was a big issue for me and that is a big issue for a lot of us. Having role models and seeing other women succeed in doing what you want to do helps you believe you can do that as well.”
The group agreed that having role models for involvement in ACG is so important. Dr. Alison Schneider observed that, “For young women coming into GI who may not have the time or who have really young families, even if they are not that involved [in ACG] now, it’s important for women gastroenterologists to be there for them. The time will come when they will have more time. They see you as a role model. Be there. Talk to them. Even if they are not going to the Annual Meeting now, they will know that they will be welcomed when the time comes.”
In discussing how women can become more engaged in ACG, the group identified securing time away for professional activities as a major barrier. There was a consensus that as more and more physicians are becoming salaried, time away is a challenge. For Dr. Alyn Adrain, who has been active as ACG Governor at the same time she held state level leadership roles, to fulfill her numerous commitments she joked, “There goes my vacation!”
Dr. Joyann Kroser shared, “I’m finding now what’s problematic—and I’ve been in private practice and academics—is getting co-workers and supervisors to value the time away [for involvement in professional organizations]. I resent that this time away has to be counted as PTO; there should be a separate category. It’s not CME, it’s not PTO, it’s not community service. As I am beginning to negotiate my next contract, I’m thinking of this.”
Dr. Kroser continued, “For the first time, I finally got a lawyer that’s a health lawyer. Her job is negotiating contracts for physicians. It’s her job to know the MGMA data. Now, [lawyers] don’t come cheap, but if I had known before, I feel that it’s money worth spending. If I had any advice to an early career physician, I would say, ‘get a good health employment lawyer.’”
Dr. Shireen Pais agreed and shared that, in her experience, having a lawyer review her employment contract was, “Worth every penny. It was expensive, but I got extra weeks of time off, additional CME funding, and dropped a restrictive covenant. Extremely, extremely valuable.” Dr. Pais now refers friends and former fellows to this lawyer.
Even as the discussion covered ways to negotiate for days off for involvement with professional societies, several Governors made the point that young physicians need to know to ask, and this relates to salary negotiations as well. Dr. Early noted, “Your boss is not going to give you a higher salary or more days off; you have to ask. That’s what a lot of women don’t know they can do, and a lot of men just do it.”
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WITH ACG’S FEMALE GOVERNORS
Who are your role models?
My role models have been the women who blazed the path ahead of me: Grace Elta, Juanita Merchant, Chris Surawicz, Carol Burke, as well as my male mentor, Steve Hanauer. —Dr. Kane
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I want to give a shout out to my mentors Chris Surawicz and David Sachar, amongst so many along the way. We learn from our mentors and our mentees, our patients and staff. —Dr. Sita Chokhavatia
I was first inspired to consider a career in GI during my medical school training, rounding on medical wards with Arvey Rogers. Some of my most important mentors are from my fellowship years (Asyia Ahmad, James Reynolds, Scott Myers). Another very important role model and inspiration has been my parents. My father has been a practicing general dentist for the past 45 years (solo practice and still practicing!) with my mother working the front office. Even though this is not exactly gastroenterology, I have learned important values, attitudes, behavior, and ethics that apply to medicine and patient care. —Dr. Schneider
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My dad is definitely a role model for me. He has MS and has been wheelchair bound for the last 5 years and yet he is the most optimistic person I know—and he manages to work out at the Y more often than I do. Both he and my mother instilled in me an attitude of gratitude and perseverance. —Dr. Anne Tuskey
Who encourages or inspires you?
My parents, and my husband and family, have always given me guidance, encouragement, and overall support to be where I am today. —Dr. Schneider —Dr. Early
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I find that it is my patients that inspire me. They have a terrible condition which can severely affect even the simplest of pleasures the rest of us take for granted. Trying to help them and understand their condition is what drives me. —Dr. Kane
ACG inspires me to aim high and facilitates reaching these goals! —Dr. Chokhavatia
My family is my biggest support and my biggest cheerleaders. I also draw inspiration from my patients, my students (I teach the GI course for the first-year medical students), and strong women in our field. —Dr. Tuskey
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ACG’S MENTORING PROGRAM
During the discussion with the women Governors, Dr. Kane mentioned that ACG sponsors a Mentoring Program to provide residents, fellows-intraining, and junior faculty access to faculty from diverse practice models, academic departments, and geographic regions. The College hopes to foster informal dialogue between mentors and mentees, while affording mentees the opportunity to gain valuable guidance and career advice from faculty not accessible to them at their institutions.
Learn more:
gi.org/mentoring-program
I came to the US carrying the genes and morals of my parents, and the culture and customs of my home country, Turkey. I studied in Austria (medical school), again being influenced by Europe, and ended up in Brooklyn, the true melting pot of the world. My mom and dad were the true inspirations for me. —Dr. Aytaman
What are you most proud of personally and/or professionally?
When a colleague asks me to care for them or their family, I am incredibly honored and proud. —Dr. Early
I am most proud of the opportunity to care for my patients and develop long-lasting relationships with them. —Dr. Schneider
I am most proud of my family. As a child, I dreamed about being a doctor; I never focused on marriage or children. I was fortunate to meet a very supportive soulmate and have a lovely family so when I have an exhausting day at work, coming home to them is my haven. Professionally, I am most proud of my achievements. While I may not be a Grace Elta (a true trailblazer!), I influence many in my practice, as well as younger physicians in training and early in their careers. —Dr. Pais
When I chose medicine, I had decided not to get married, as I thought I would never have time for [family]. I was so wrong. I am so proud of my two daughters and am thankful to my husband for always supporting me. Professionally, I think my biggest achievement has been to bring the national liver cancer providers together and initiate a very impactful system re-design all across the nation to improve the care, access to expertise, and management of all veterans with liver cancer. —Dr. Aytaman
What specific advice would you give to other women in GI about getting involved in ACG?
Join. Take part in the [GI] Circles. Send an email to see if you can participate on a committee. Apply for Fellowship (FACG), if eligible. There are so many ways to get more involved and you have nothing to lose, but a lot to gain. —Dr. Tuskey
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Ask or reach out to get involved. No one necessarily knows you are interested unless you tell someone. The staff and officers of the ACG are all eager to hear from you and are easily accessible. Heck, pick up the phone and call the headquarters and tell them you want to get involved, and you will be connected to a live person who can help (unless it is the Annual Meeting and then all the staff are busy on-site running the best GI meeting of the year)! —Dr. Kane
Being involved in ACG is a great way to network for your personal and professional growth. We can all learn and grow from each other. —Dr. Schneider
Get involved; it helps make a difference. You develop a great network of people with similar interests and goals. —Dr. Pais
What advice would you give to your “younger self” about your career and your life today?
It’s okay to allow yourself a nap and/or a trip to the gym instead of answering emails. If you really don’t want to do something, or your gut is telling you it’s a bad idea, speak up. —Dr. Kane
Pace yourself. —Dr. Early
Enjoy the journey, keep reading, spend more time with your family; it all works out. —Dr. Pais Stop stressing about the plan. I spent so much time worrying over the details on how to get from A to B (when to get married, when to have the baby, where to do fellowship, and on, and on, and on) that I missed out on parts of the journey itself. —Dr. Tuskey
Appreciate your own value rather than going with the flow. Create a better work/ family balance. Know when to say no. Define your path better. Get involved with our professional organizations earlier. Find mentors early on and hang on to them, rather than waiting for opportunities to come to you. —Dr. Aytaman
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(1) Dr. Pais, (2) Dr. Kroser, (3) Dr. Schneider, (4) Dr. Kane, (5) Dr. Chokhavatia, (6) Dr. Tuskey, (7) Dr. Adrain, (8) Dr. Early, (9) ACG’s women Governors, (10) Dr. Aytaman Photo Credits: Photos 1 to 10 Ben Zweig. Photos 11-14 ACG Governors’ Fly-In, April 2019
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ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS
Sunanda V. Kane, MD, MSPH, FACG, ACG President 2018-2019, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN Dr. Kane’s leadership trajectory in ACG did not involve service as a Governor. She recalls that she lost a two-person race for ACG Governor for Illinois, but moved up in ACG leadership through the long pathway of committee work and serving as a committee chair. She also was course codirector for the ACG Postgraduate Course in 2007, the same year she was appointed to the ACG Board of Trustees. Alison Schneider, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Southern Florida, Cleveland Clinic Florida, Weston, FL After a long tenure on the Women in GI Committee, Dr. Schneider was encouraged to run for Governor by former ACG Governor for Southern Florida Gerardo S. Lanes, MD, FACG. In addition to her involvement in ACG, Dr. Schneider is also active in the Florida Gastroenterologic Society and appreciates the benefit of both the state and national perspectives. Dayna S. Early, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Missouri, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO Dr. Early got involved with the College because she likes ACG’s Annual Scientific Meeting and could relate to what was presented as a clinician. One of her colleagues suggested, “why don’t you run for ACG Governor?” and she was inspired to jump right in and run. Alyn L. Adrain, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Rhode Island, Gastroenterology Associates, Providence, RI Dr. Adrain characterizes her current term as “ACG Governor 2.0” since she ran and served 12 years ago when her Rhode Island colleague Samir Shah, MD, FACG was tapped to serve as Vice Chair of the Board of Governors. At that same time, she was serving as president of the RI Medical Society. She is active in organized medicine and represents Rhode Island at the AMA. Ayse Aytaman, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Brooklyn, NY, Brooklyn VA NY Harbor Healthcare System A member of ACG since her fellowship training, Dr. Aytaman was nominated for ACG Governor by her mentees and was strongly encouraged to run by her colleague Frank G. Gress, MD, FACG, who preceded her as ACG Governor for Brooklyn. Shireen A. Pais, MD, FACG , ACG Governor for Southern New York, New York Presbyterian Medical Group, Yorktown Heights, NY Dr. Pais has been Governor for Southern New York since 2016 and sees mentorship as playing an invaluable role in her career. As role models, she recognizes Julia Le Blanc, Laurie Deleve, Shelly Lu, Loren Laine, Russel Yang, and John Dewitt as “just some of the few who have been part of my life tapestry.” 14
Sita S. Chokhavatia, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Northern New Jersey, Valley Medical Group, Ridgewood, NJ Dr. Chokhavatia found ACG the most welcoming of the GI societies and got involved with the College during the time she was junior faculty. She was encouraged by one of her mentors, ACG Past President Christina M. Surawicz, MD, MACG, to serve on ACG committees. Anne G. Tuskey, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Virginia, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA Dr. Tuskey started her participation in ACG as a resident when she attended the 2011 ACG Annual Scientific Meeting in Washington, DC. She was inspired and felt empowered by attending a Women in GI Committee luncheon and served on that committee for six years. She credits ACG President Sunanda V. Kane, MD, MSPH, FACG for urging members of the Women in GI Committee to stand for election as an ACG Governor. Joyann A. Kroser, MD, FACG, ACG Governor for Eastern Pennsylvania, Crozer Gastroenterology Associates, Glen Mills, PA Dr. Kroser has been active in ACG and values the many opportunities to network. She chaired the ACG Patient Care Committee from 2015 to 2016. She has also been active in her county medical society and state GI society.
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Alignment but NOT Employment: Professional Service Agreements with a Hospital System
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