the Changing
Face of Medicine By Emma V. Chambers
Four female physicians give their views on health care, an aging population and the Internet
T
eacher, mom, model. These were customary responses from young girls in the 50s and 60s when asked the age old question, ‘what do you want to be when you grow up.’ If they ventured into the medical arena, the answer was nurse. That was then. As women’s career opportunities burgeoned as a result of the women’s movement of the 60s and 70s, so have their choices. Medicine, and physician in particular, is one of the leading career choices for today’s woman.
Barbara I. Held, M.D. Specialty: Obstetrics/gynecology Medical School: State University of New York Health Sciences Center at Brooklyn Residency: Columbia Presbyterian Board certified in obstetrics and gynecology
Recently, I sat down with four female physicians on The Methodist Hospital’s medical staff to discuss a variety of topics. These respected clinicians and researchers are but a few of the women who comprise nearly 26 percent of the hospital’s medical staff: obstetrician/ gynecologist Barbara Held, M.D.; cardiologist Karla Kurrelmeyer, M.D.; neuro logist Ericka Simpson, M.D.; and gastroenterologist Karen Woods, M.D.
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