Women in Healthcare

FEBRUARY 2020 | EDUCATIONANDCAREERNEWS.COM

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WOMEN IN HEALTHCARE

THE LEADERSHIP EDITION

Caterina Scorsone

The "Grey's Anatomy" star is inspiring women to pursue leadership roles in healthcare

How the American Medical Women's Association is empowering women to address the gender gap in leadership Hear from three women leaders in healthcare on challenges and opportunities while advancing their career

Early Exposure to Leadership Helps Women Gain Traction Women are underrepresented in healthcare leadership, but fellowships can help women bridge this gap by providing mentoring, support, and valuable experience.

Although the healthcare workforce consists of 75 percent women, recent surveys of hospital and health systems reveal that only a small percent sit in the CEO seat.

One promising area of preparation for early-career female healthcare managers is administrative fellowships. These one- or twoyear intensive experiential learning-work experiences are meant for recent graduate school students to gain valuable exposure to senior executives, strategic problem solving and projects, and mentoring.

Networking opportunities According to former fellow Dameka Miller, vice president of strategic sourcing and value analysis for Trinity Health, “My fellowship experience gave me the opportunity to interact with senior executives in my daily work as a young professional.”

Many current CEOs in healthcare served as administrative fellows early in their career. It is a path that has shown great promise for future leaders. As Miller says, “The access and exposure during my fellowship were key factors in building my career development plan for growth into advanced leadership roles.”

Joyce Anne Wainio, Vice President, National Center for Healthcare Leadership

The State of Gender Parity in Healthcare The healthcare industry has made great strides in increasing gender parity among professionals, but there is still much room for continued progress.

Laurie Cooke, PGDip, RPh, CAE President and CEO, Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association

T

he groundswell of energy around gender parity — in healthcare and in the larger world — is palpable. As Melinda Gates noted recently when announcing her $1 billion donation to support gender equality, it feels as though a window of opportunity has opened.

Progress The 2019 Women in the Workplace study from LeanIn.org and McKinsey & Company reflects this energy. The study, now in its fifth year, shows that more companies than ever are embracing best practices, deepening commitments, and holding senior leaders accountable for progress. And the numbers are moving, with women’s C-suite representation rising from 17 percent in 2015 to 21 percent in 2019.

But the numbers also reveal that the goal of parity is still far from certain — and that our work toward this goal requires continued diligence.

Areas for improvement 1. The “broken rung” at the start of the corporate management ladder: The McKinsey report shows that just 72 women for every 100 men are hired and promoted to the first level of management. This threatens parity at each subsequent level, and must be fixed to create a strong female talent pipeline for the future. In healthcare specifically, we must also work on movement at the top, which continues to be a sticking point.

2. Progress for all women: The fact is that progress has not been equally shared. For example, while 1 in 5 C-suite leaders is female, just 1 in 25 is a woman of color. We must delve deeper into how to effectively broaden inclusivity.

3. Emerging concerns: Progress isn’t always linear. For example, Medical Marketing & Media magazine’s 2019 Career & Salary Survey showed that women in biopharmaceutical marketing earn 63 percent less on average than their male counterparts. This gap has more than tripled since 2017. We must keep our finger on the pulse of emerging issues, and address them head-on as they arise.

Maintaining the momentum At the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association, we’ve found that there is no substitute for the power of joining forces.

Together, companies can more quickly identify and understand emerging trends, share best practices for addressing issues, and hold each other accountable for real progress. Whether it’s developing parity-focused partnerships, supporting studies like Women in the Workplace, or joining consortiums like our Gender Parity Collaborative, we encourage companies to work together to capitalize on this window of opportunity — so we can finally achieve parity for all. n

Publisher Nellie Dubin Business Developer Gretchen Pancak Managing Director Luciana Olson Lead Designer Tiffany Pryor Designer Kayla Mendez Lead Editor Mina Fanous Copy Editor Sydney Scott Director of Sales Stephanie King Director of Product Faye Godfrey Content Strategist Vanessa Rodriguez Cover Photo ABC/Mike Rosenthal All photos are credited to Getty Images unless otherwise specified. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve USA Today.

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Ways Women in Healthcare Can Promote Gender Equity

Promoting equal gender representation in healthcare benefits industry professionals, patients, and society as a whole.

The World Economic Forum forecasts that it will take more than two centuries for women and men to reach economic and social parity in the United States. In many parts of the healthcare workforce, the data is even worse — and racial and other biases make the data even more sobering.

Striving for change The aim of the Carol Emmott Foundation is to ensure that women in healthcare are free to fully advance their careers and promote positive health outcomes. Our fellows have learned a few new techniques to move the needle:

1

Believe you should have a seat at the table.

Your contribution is essential to the health of patients and the quality of care they receive. Many gender disparities in care will only be overcome if women participate in the decision-making.

2

Understand that your self-doubts don’t help.

Nearly all our remarkably accomplished fellows exhibit the pervasive self-doubt called the “impostor phenomenon.” Their self-assessments are a fraction of how others evaluated them. Give yourself credit.

3

Engage and make yourself heard.

Know that you will have to work harder to be listened to. Be confident that your voice is unique and can reflect a rarely heard perspective of patients and families.

4

Create a peer network of support and amplify the voices of other women.

Find a group of friends and colleagues who have your back. Women find it more natural to stand together and support one another — and it is more fun.

5

Build a personal board of directors.

We all need honest feedback and benefit from having a small group of men and women who are in our corner. Invite people you look up to, respect, and trust — people who care about you. The most essential members of your board are your sponsors, those who are willing to vouch for you.

Ask for their help, use their time wisely, and listen.

6

Recruit partners for support.

Some of us have supportive spouses, parents, or neighbors who pitch in to make our lives at work and home possible, and some do not. All women deserve to get the help they need.

7

When you move up, hold the door open for others.

Any of us who have achieved success have done so with the help of many. Pay it forward by holding the door open for those who haven’t had the support, life circumstances, health, or luck that we have had. That is how we will shorten the two centuries to equity.

8

Remember that when you help women, you lift society.

The data is well-presented in Melinda Gates’ book, "The Moment of Lift," and by the World Economic Forum. The largest untapped opportunity for GDP growth is the full participation of women.

I can’t wait two centuries. I can’t even wait one. Please join me in accelerating your own career to create a healthier future for yourself and for all. n Christine Malcolm, CEO, Carol Emmott Foundation 4 • EDUCATIONANDCAREERNEWS.COM

PHOTO: COURTESY OF CHRISTIANACARE

How Women Leaders in Healthcare Are Empowering Other Women

SPONSORED

While women make 80 percent of the healthcare buying and usage decisions and comprise 65 percent of the workforce, there remains a gap in female leadership.

Though women represent 30 percent of healthcare leadership roles, progress is being made.

“It’s absolutely essential to have women in leadership roles,” says Janice E. Nevin, M.D., MPH, president and CEO of ChristianaCare, a private not-for-profit regional healthcare system based in Delaware. “By building a healthcare workforce with diversity at every level, we are better

able to make a positive impact on the health of everyone in all of the communities we serve.”

A family medicine physician, Dr. Nevin has over 20 years in the industry. In the beginning of her career, she was one of a few women doctors in a male-dominated field. She remembers working hard to fit in. Now she’s the boss and leading the way for other women to succeed in the field.

Being intentional As CEO, a role she has held for the past five years, Dr. Nevin is focused on diversifying the workplace and being more inclusive. The top executive team of 10 is comprised of five men and five women. Over 74 percent of all ChristianaCare leaders are women, a 27 percent increase since five years ago.

Nationally, 36 percent of firstor mid-level officials at S&P 500

companies are female and only 25 percent of executive- and senior-level officials and managers are female. And 44 percent of ChristianaCare’s physicians are female — an increase of nearly 40 percent since 2015.

Nationally, 37 percent of all physicians are women.

“We have some exceptional women in some of the medical disciplines that are more traditionally occupied by men,” says Dr. Nevin, noting females are excelling in cardiology, as well as transplant, bariatric, and neurointerventional surgery.

Leaning in “I think it’s an amazing time for leadership, particularly in healthcare,” says Dr. Kara Odom Walker, secretary of Delaware Health and Social Services.

“We’re starting to see more women in medical school classes

and more women taking on leadership roles.”

She remembers meeting Dr. Nevin nearly 20 years ago and admiring her personally and professionally. These days she’s grateful they work in partnership in Delaware.

“It’s made a huge difference to me to be able to look up to women like her and others who’ve taken on leadership roles in medicine,” says Dr. Odom Walker.

Dr. Nevin encourages women to say yes to opportunities for career growth, even when they’re a little outside their area of expertise.

“Be intentional about working to get on a team or be part of a project that’s outside of your department, outside your area,” she says. “Because it really is how we grow.”

Diversity and innovation Dr. Nevin believes that the diversity of her organization and her leadership team is a competitive advantage, because the varied perspectives help to support an innovative approach to care.

“We are reimagining how we deliver care — to deliver health, not just care, to the people we serve,” she says. “How do we partner with people to help them achieve the health goals that are important to them and do it in a way that respects cost and creates affordability?”

Dr. Nevin says decisions made today will impact how the next generation experiences healthcare. She’s optimistic about the future.

“It's really being able to look at health and wellness in a very different way — transforming the delivery system, investing in mental health, and really connecting deeply with community resources around social care that I think is essential if we're going to create the system of the future.” n Kristen Castillo MEDIAPLANET • 5

A Master’s Degree in Healthcare Can Open New Doors for Women Caroline Moluf, Master of Health Administration graduate from the Medical University of South Carolina and current health solutions administrator, explains how this degree opened up new opportunities.

How did getting your master’s degree allow you to advance your career?

The diverse coursework and understanding the operational infrastructure of a health system were a huge asset. Everything from insurance reimbursement and financial modeling to strategic leadership skills was useful as I built my career. The network of colleagues I developed will last a lifetime and was also a huge benefit of the program.

Why did you decide to pursue this specific master’s degree?

When I was in my undergraduate courses, I took a class called Economics of Healthcare. I was intrigued by the complexities and began to explore MHA programs. The rest is history.

What advice do you have for someone struggling to find their niche within healthcare?

A fellowship or multiple internships in different departments will allow you to explore different areas. Keep searching because it could take a few years to find your niche.

I have worked in operations and strategy, and now I run a department focused on innovative product development and commercialization for a health system.

How Medtech Is Disrupting the Norm From the Top Down Inclusion and diversity in medical technology (medtech) professionals are the key to attracting and retaining the innovative talent that will improve patients’ lives.

Medtech leaders must be as diverse as the patients they serve. This concept has been a central catalyst as the medtech industry works to drive cultural change that will attract and retain top diverse talent.

Supporting women in medtech The journey began in 2015 when the industry launched the Women’s Executive Network to educate and elevate women industry leaders. Through meetups, conferences, seminars, and more, we’ve created a powerful, diverse network. But we’ve found that uniting women leaders will not, on its own, create the inclusive spaces necessary to support and

promote those women leaders, nor cultivate new ones.

Medtech industry advocates have collaborated to map out what “ideal” looks like in the context of inclusion and diversity.

We’ve contemplated how organizations mature along the continuum of inclusion and diversity standards to become industry models.

The path to inclusion We’ve found that before companies can successfully integrate inclusion and diversity into their business practices, they must first integrate inclusion and diversity into their leadership vision.

Holistic change will happen from the top down.

• Leaders of any gender must understand their own biases, practice conscious inclusion in the face of those biases, and raise an authentic voice for sponsoring change.

• Leaders must make inclusion and diversity

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a priority, and they must be willing to have the often difficult conversations that will result in a viable strategic plan.

• Leaders must invest in the tools they need to help drive the changes that they’ve recognized need to happen.

Early progress While we’re early on in our initiatives, our energies are already paying dividends.

At the 2019 Medtech Conference, the industry honored its first woman Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. We talked about inclusion and diversity on our conference’s largest stage, and we made gender diversity a priority for our speaker selection criteria.

As a result, 96 percent of our 128 panels included women. Overall, we estimate that 40 percent of the 3,300 executives in attendance were women — a 33 percent increase over last year.

We all want a healthier, happier, and more productive future. That future starts with innovation, and innovation starts with inclusion and diversity. n Scott Whitaker, CEO, AdvaMed; Jennifer Brearey, Chief Financial Officer, Executive Director of the Women’s Executive Network, AdvaMed

Fixing the Gender Gap in Healthcare Leadership

Women currently represent 75 percent of the healthcare workforce and make 80 percent of household health decisions, but they navigate a system largely dominated by male leadership.

Recent reports show that within healthcare, only 13 percent of CEOs and 30 percent of executive leaders are women.

Why is this important? Studies show that having more women in leadership improves an organization’s performance metrics — innovation, fiscal productivity, and employee satisfaction. Female CEOs have been noted for their emotional intelligence, team approach, and resilience. More women in leadership may also reduce the gender pay gap and improve workplace

climate, an essential factor in preventing sexual harassment.

Achieving equity Within medicine, this gender gap still persists despite near equivalent matriculation to medical school for the past 15 years. Yet the distribution of women in academia remains skewed toward the lower ranks — 60 percent at the instructor level are women versus 25 percent at full professor, and only 16 percent of medical school deans and 18 percent of department chairs are women. We no longer have a pipeline problem.

We have a leadership problem.

What can be done to achieve gender parity? Individual professional development is important, but institutional change is necessary to achieve equity at all levels. Examples include

expanded parental-leave policies, flexible promotion timelines, and alternative tenure tracks. Hiring procedures must be transparent, and raising awareness of unconscious bias is crucial, especially for members of search committees. An equitable number of qualified women should be on every list of individuals being considered for executive leadership positions.

Resources Increasing gender-diverse leadership requires not just mentorship but, more importantly, sponsorship and formal leadership training. Organizations like TIME’S UP Healthcare, the American Medical Women’s Association, and the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association advocate for gender equity and provide sup-

port, networks, and resources to women in the health professions.

Women are vital participants in this healthcare dialogue. Studies have shown that women physicians provide more patient-centered care, adhere more closely to preventive medicine guidelines, and have slightly better outcomes than their male counterparts.

Never has there been a better opportunity to bridge the gender gap in healthcare leadership. This is not just a women’s issue; it is a health imperative. Increasing women’s leadership will more effectively align all stakeholders, transforming our current healthcare system to provide better care for patients. n Eliza Lo Chin, M.D., M.P.H.; Roberta Gebhard, D.O.; Connie Newman, M.D.; Nicole P. Sandhu, M.D., Ph.D., American Medical Women’s Association MEDIAPLANET • 7

Caterina Scorsone, Star on “Grey’s Anatomy,” Wants to Empower Women Healthcare Leaders “Grey’s Anatomy” fans know actress Caterina Scorsone as Dr. Amelia Frances Shepherd, head of neurosurgery at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Like her on-screen persona, Scorsone is a passionate advocate for women, especially women in medicine.

Caterina Scorsone is honored to play a

PHOTO: ABC/JOHN FLEENOR

strong woman in the media.

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Role model “Amelia Shepherd is a great role model for women because while she is brilliant and accomplished, she breaks the perception that a successful woman must put her femininity and her emotions and her vulnerabilities into a vault in order to succeed in a high-intensity position,” says Scorsone. “Amelia does not pretend she is a perfect person and

she does not deny the aspects of herself that make her human.

“She is able to look at her vulnerabilities and name them, apologize for her mistakes without shame, and move forward with resilience.”

The actress is proud when she gets letters from young women who have just been accepted into, or graduated from, medical school.

“Many credit ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ for sparking their interest,” she says. “Many of them say the show modeled the possibility of a career in surgery in a vivid enough way that they could picture it for themselves.”

The actress is encouraged that our culture is seeing more diversity, including women and people of color, on screen and off.

“Visibility in media is a huge part of how people come to conceive of themselves and one another and their relative roles in society,” she says, concluding, "Visibility is possibility".

Disparity in healthcare leadership There’s a gap of women in healthcare leadership, with only 30 percent of women having C-level roles and 13 percent of women holding CEO positions. While Scorsone says that gender disparity is also felt in other industries,

she says it’s important to see examples of women succeeding in healthcare leadership.

“Successful women in healthcare can do so much to foster the next generation of woman leaders,” says Scorsone, explaining the first professionals her daughters met were female doctors.

She also encourages women in healthcare to start prioritizing women’s health issues beyond birth control. For example, she says more clinical trials can focus on the effects of disease and medication on women.

Visibility is possibility.

Supporting working mothers The actress, 38, recently gave birth to her third child, a daughter. Scorsone is concerned about the lack of child care options and support for working mothers.

She feels lucky to have had a supportive work environment when she came back to work, including child care and nursing rooms.

“It allowed me the opportunity to work during my childbearing years and it gave

my producers the opportunity to employ a highly skilled craftsperson with all of her accumulated experience and expertise while she was at the height of her creative power, in her thirties,” she says.

Scorsone says providing child care and parental support can empower women to pursue careers. She recalls seeing other women being supported when they had children while working in Shondaland, the TV production company behind “Private Practice” and “Grey’s Anatomy.”

She’s also an advocate for income equality: “Pay parity would help empower women to pursue leadership roles in all sectors, including healthcare.”

Assets Scorsone says “the emotional presence that has been associated with femininity” is starting to be seen as an asset, instead of a liability.

She’s encouraged about the future. “Instead of repressing our emotional reality, we are increasingly learning to name it and integrate it,” she says. “This kind of authenticity can lead to a far less toxic work environment and a more holistic approach to team building and communication in the work space.” n Kristen Castillo

EMPOWERING WOMEN IN

HEALTHCARE. More than 60% of our students are women, all learning in industry-leading facilites and practice sites.

Through teaching and research, we’re developing highperforming team players and healthcare leaders, ready to help people live healthier, safer and better lives.

Chapman.edu/explorepharm Harry and Diane Rinker Health Science Campus 9401 Jeronimo Road, Irvine, California 92618

MEDIAPLANET • 9

Women Leaders in the Healthcare Industry Discuss Their Careers How can women overcome obstacles and fight for equal representation as leaders in healthcare?

Three experts in the field share their challenges, achievements, and paths to professional success.

Elizabeth Nabel, M.D. President, Brigham Health

What unique obstacles have you faced as a woman in healthcare?

How were you able to overcome them?

Elizabeth Nabel: Women in science and medicine — and most other industries — still face many of the challenges I encountered, particularly with the issue of balancing career and family. When I had my first child, I spent only 2 weeks with my son before returning to my training program.

Cynthia Verst: One obstacle within the pharmaceutical industry was sluggish role expansion and vertical movement. While the niche therapeutic area and clinical development research focus imparted tremendous experience, I was eager to expand the aperture.

This was the impetus for joining the clinical research organization industry to expand my experiences and leadership opportunities.

Esther Choo: Organizations expect women to be the helpers, but rarely expect or encourage them to lead and shape strategic vision and therefore rarely allow women to demonstrate their full value or work to the top of their potential.

Can you speak to the importance of diversity in leadership?

EN: Diversity in leadership — and across all levels of an organization — is crucial in healthcare. It is vital that we build a workforce that reflects the population we serve. We

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Cynthia Verst President, Design and Delivery Innovation, Research & Development Solutions, IQVIA must actively value our differences and commit fully to the fact that a diverse workforce will lead to improved access, higher quality care, and better outcomes, particularly for those who have historically been underserved.

CV: Leadership diversity is vitally important to bring innovation, growth, and sustainability to companies.

Different perspectives, experiences, and personas align synergistically to increase a company’s probability of success.

Interestingly, a recent 2019 S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis revealed that firms with female CEOs and CFOs have yielded statistically superior stock price performance and increased profitability and stock returns.

Esther Choo, M.D., M.P.H. Founding Member, TIME’S UP Healthcare

EC: Companies like McKinsey have demonstrated that across industries, having greater leadership diversity at the senior executive level is likely a competitive differentiator for companies in terms of financial performance. And in fact, in almost every metric that matters to companies, diversity makes companies better. It takes effort, but there is a strong return on investment.

What can health systems and medical companies do to empower their female employees?

EN: The first step is identifying the root causes of the disparities we see at every level, including leadership. Our employees are truly our greatest resource. We must listen to them, learn from their experiences,

and commit to making improvements.

CV: Setting the tone at the top to recognize the importance of cultural diversity is essential to empower all employees.

In addition, it is important to set the tone within an organization, bottom-up and top-down, so that opportunities exist at all levels for all qualified individuals.

EC: Critically examine how the system is set up to develop and boost generation after generation of the same people in power. Ensure that decision-making around paid leadership positions is as transparent and objective as possible, with mechanisms built in to protect against bias. Openly value and richly reward work to boost inclusion, belonging, and equity. n MEDIAPLANET

UNLEASH YOUR POTENTIAL TO DRIVE HEALTHCARE FORWARD Imagine a world where every healthcare decision is the right one.

Where data science and technology power human science.

Where better patient outcomes are not only possible, but expected.

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BIOMARIN WOMEN LEADERS

Making a Big Impact on Rare Disease

At BioMarin, we use breakthrough science to develop treatments that make a big difference for rare disease patients – and we work to advance the standard of care for those patients around the world. To find solutions for the patients we serve, our workforce must represent diversity in all its forms.

We are committed to erasing the gender gap in our industry, actively working to advance the representation of women in the sciences. Amy, Brinda and Vikki are three of the talented and pioneering women leaders who are helping us to envision and explore new possibilities in every aspect of our business.

Together, the women of BioMarin are shaping the future of our workforce – and giving new hope to rare disease patients across the globe.

Learn more about BioMarin’s dedication to diversity, equity and inclusion and explore career opportunities at Biomarin.com.

Brinda Balakrishnan, MD, PhD, Group VP, Corporate and Business Development, Amy Wireman, Group VP, Human Resources and Victoria Sluzky, PhD, Senior VP, Technical Development