AWAEM Awareness - July/August 2011

July-August, 2011

AWAEMAWARENESS

A bimonthly update to inform you of the current activities of our Academy in an effort to make this organization a strong advocate for women in academic emergency medicine.

Table of Contents A Controversial Topic - If I Could Save Time in a Bottle

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A Lunch Among Friends - More Pearls from the AWAEM Luncheon

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AWAEM Member Highlight

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Testosterone, Estrogen & Chaos Regarding Gender Differences in Communication

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News You Can Use - Cause of the Doctor Shortage, A Rebuttal

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News You Can Use - The Mommy Wars, Medical Edition

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Available Committees

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We want to hear from you!

Please send your comments and feedback to AWAEMNews@gmail.com.

We hope to continue our services of communication to you during the downtime necessary for improvements to the main SAEM and Academy websites.

Any questions or comments sent to this address will be forwarded to your leaders for response.

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AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

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"I arise in the morning torn between the desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world.

This makes it hard to plan the day."

-E B White

A Controversial Topic If I Could Save Time in a Bottle

By Stacey Poznanski, DO

Time. A limited and precious resource. How do we spend it wisely? Who defines what is ‘wise’? Is it efficiency, pleasure, or productivity? Is success in this endeavor defined by the person using this elusive commodity or by those who benefit most from the results of it, such as our employers, our patients, our families?

These are not new questions, rather ones that resurface over and over again, dressed up with the latest catch phrases to spark a sexy debate on a timeless topic.

There is only one of me, and I get 24 hours in a day. No more. No less. What am I going to do about it?

In a NY Times Op-ED article entitled Don’t Quit this Day Job and published this past June (Click Here for Link), Dr. Karen Sibert, an anesthesiologist, put forth her opinion of time as it relates to women in medicine. She expresses concerns over a proposed trend for women in medicine to enter “part-time” employment and offers explanations as to why this may be detrimental to patient care, health care, and an overall commitment to medicine.

This in fact, did spark some debate. In addition to casual conversation amongst friends and colleagues, many people responded to the NYTimes with their agreements or disagreements on the subject, while others wrote more official statements of rebuttal in formats ranging from online blogs to articles published in other journals. These commentaries have come from men, women, medical students, residents, and faculty, both academic and private, each with a different spin on the topic based upon their own life experiences. I have included a few examples here, and you will find one rebuttal published by AWAEM Member Julie Welch, MD) on pages 6 and an excerpt from another rebuttal on page 7.

“The question we should be asking is not how to strong-arm more doctors into practicing full-time, but how to keep women and men energized and able to take care of our growing insured population. The onus is on the system (including the hospitals that benefit from cheap, subsidized resident physician labor) to ensure that female and male doctors can be more productive. This means practice innovations that make better use of doctors’ time through efficient, team-based care.”

By Ishani Ganguli, in Short White Coat, a blog about becoming a doctor. For full post, click here.

To the Editor: While Dr. Karen S. Sibert’s point about the shortage of doctors entering primary care fields is valid, her proposal to address it by querying women on their future child-rearing plans smacks of patriarchy and sexism. Even if every medical school seat today were filled by a male student, at current rates of matriculation into primary care fields it would do little to mitigate the problem.

I chose to work as a part-time doctor early in my career to be supportive to my full-time physician wife. Being asked about my parenting intentions at any point in the process would have been chilling.

John Henning Schumann Chicago, June 13, 2011 To the Editor: Dr. Karen S. Sibert’s excellent Op-Ed article on part-time doctors (the majority of whom are women) was something that needed to be said. I know of several female doctors who have never practiced past an internship, and the vast majority of female physicians I know work less than full time. This works all right for nonsurgical specialties, but in a specialty like neurosurgery (which I practice), one cannot work part time or the surgical skills will never be very good.

Unfortunately, medicine for many is about lifestyle and income, and less of a calling.

David W. Beck Mason City, Iowa, June 12, 2011

For other responses printed in the NYTimes, click here.

Thoughts from our current President, Stephanie Abbuhl, MD: Do women work harder later in their careers? Do women who work part-time work harder than the number of hours they are paid and are actually cost-effective? Have women brought a long-overdue questioning of the traditional version of a medical career where it required an unhealthy dedication that led to a neglect of one’s personal life?

I must admit that I am conflicted about all this….on the one hand I think that medicine should be a commitment that reflects the privilege and responsibility that it is….but on the other hand, I think that medicine has gained enormously from the talented, hard-working women who have fundamentally changed the profession (for the better!)…is this a generational thing or a gender thing or both?

As a woman practicing full time in academic EM and entering the third trimester of my first pregnancy, I certainly have my own thoughts. But what I have found more intriguing than my own gut reaction are the many perspectives voiced by others that I hadn’t considered. As the email strings discussing the issue get longer, I am in awe of the collective wisdom of this organization of women, the strength of what occurs when we stand together, and the infinite possibilities that we have before us to “improve the world” and enjoy the process. Rather than discussing a focus of blame for the issues at hand, we have already begun to discuss a process of change. How, when, and with whom that change occurs is yet to be determined, and we look to you, our members, for more insight into the intricate world of work-life integration and the mother of all resources, time.

AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

A Lunch Among Friends More Pearls from the AWAEM Luncheon

By Sue Watts, MD & Stacey Poznanski, DO

Members from around the country met on June 4th at the SAEM Meeting in Boston for a fabulous lunch full of lively discussion on some of today’s hottest topics for women in Academic Emergency Medicine. The experience level ranged from Residents to Chairmen (or should I say Chair Women?) and all were intermixed at eight round tables. Each table covered a preselected topic, and we are bringing you the highlights!

Below you will find the key points and lessons learned from the two tables that discussed the important topic of WorkLife Balance. Be sure to check out the next e-Newsletter for more great tips!

Mary Jo Wagner (Leader) • Balance is the wrong word. It is really work-life integration.

The capacity to bridge the needs at home and work is a unique skill which when done right leads to joy and satisfaction.

• What about the kids?

• Does your career come to a halt?

• Don’t let the children’s schedule run you. You run the schedule.

• There are times when the priority of family will be evident.

It doesn't mean abdication of career goals and aspirations.

• Be aware that “protected“ academic time expands to fill all available free time. This time should be goal directed and utilized to advance your mission in EM. The use of Mentors is key. The three legs of academia - research, education and service should be tailored and/or refined to meet your personal goals for advancement.

• Find your best free time.

• After the kids are in bed?

• In the morning before everyone gets up?

• Women seem less likely to give themselves permission to take off time or do personal things. Give yourself permission—you deserve it!

Jeanne Basior (Leader) What is balance?

• The definition varies from person to person and varies with life stage.

Is it attainable?

• Yes, with effort.

Challenges • Just getting by is foreign to those who are used to being successful.

• Traditional gender roles still arise as a challenge.

• Guilt is ever present.

• Double-physician families have special challenges • Parents see children but not each other • How do you choose training options? Job opportunities?

• Long distance relationships • How do you explore and develop a new relationship?

Thoughts and Suggestions • There are competing goals and competing expectations in both life and work, but these are set by us and we can modify them.

• Have frank discussions with partner about expectations.

• Compromise is important element in life/work balance.

• Is live-in childcare an option? Flylady.com has suggestions for household problems.

• Is it possible for partners to share a position?

• Control the things you can control and let the rest go.

• Have a Career Plan B. Life happens and Plan A isn’t always attainable.

• Don’t use someone else’s goals and accomplishments as your yardstick.

• Carve out time for relationships, both new and existing.

• Explore the things you enjoy doing; meet people who enjoy same things.

• If you’re not good to and for yourself, neither life nor work will be good for anything or anybody.

• We are poor at delegating; we tend to do it ourselves.

Delegating is a skill that should be developed and practiced.

One example is delegating your calendar to support staff.

They can calendar events and meetings, freeing you from the time needed to set these appointments. Give it a try!

"If you neglect to recharge a battery, it dies.

And if you run full-speed ahead without stopping for water, you lose momentum to finish the race."

--Oprah Winfrey

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AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

Featured Women in Academic EM Megan Ranney

By Esther Choo, MD Megan Ranney, an Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at Brown University, is featured in our newsletter this month for her work in adolescent violence. Dr. Ranney was a Peace Corps Volunteer in West Africa for two years prior to medical school. After EM residency at Brown, she completed an Injury Prevention Fellowship, during which she obtained her MPH and solidified her commitment to improving the health of young victims of violence. This year, Dr. Ranney received the SAEM Research Training Grant to develop a cellphone intervention to reduce depression and violence in young women. Explaining her dedication to research, she said: “I love my clinical work, but it is nice to know I may be able to change some of the societal factors that bring people to the ED in the first place.” At Brown, she is a sought-after mentor to medical students and residents and has won awards for her teaching and mentoring activities. Dr. Ranney is married to her elementary school sweetheart (after a hiatus of many years) and mother to Lillian (2 years old). She is expecting her second child this September.

In each issue of the AWAEM newsletter this year, we will profile women in academic emergency medicine who inspire us, whether through scholarly work, leadership, mentorship and support of other women, modeling of work-life balance, or service in SAEM and other national EM organizations.

AWAEM’s questions for Dr. Ranney: Where will you be in 10 years?

My big picture career goals are three-fold. First, to continue doing research -- which means developing myself into someone who can get recurrent, federal-level funding.

Second, to create usable and effective interventions through my research, particularly to help our ED patients to escape from the grip of peer & partner violence.

Finally, to help the younger folks in our specialty to develop their own research niches -- particularly to try to inspire more EPs to take on public health-related issues.

What is your advice to medical students or residents thinking about a career in EM research?

Be persistent, be thorough, and be open-minded. And try your best to be gentle to yourself, especially after rejection. Rejections are not only good learning experiences, but also an inevitable part of the research enterprise. I fully admit, though, that it's easier for me to give that advice than to practice it!

“I love my clinical work, but it is nice to know I may be able to change some of the societal factors that bring people to the ED in the first place.”

Megan Ranney, MD

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AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

Testosterone, Estrogen & Chaos Regarding the Gender Differences in Communication Summary of this Didactic from SAEM, 2011

By Jeannette Wolfe, MD and Kathleen Clem, MD As our specialty matures, traditional gender based roles have expanded. Many departments are now staffed with male charge nurses and women chiefs. As these roles and positions evolve, the unique role of gender in communication style and conflict resolution is often overlooked. Joint Commission recently reported that 65% of sentinel events were directly linked to communication issues, emphasizing the fact that effective communication is imperative for good patient care and staff morale. There are real differences in the way most men and women communicate and to improve our ability to communicate, it is important to learn ways to adapt our style to maximize communication bridges between genders.

When talking about gender differences it is important to consider some of the innate neuroanatomic differences between men and women. Men’s brains are slightly larger and contain more grey matter. They also have more cortex devoted to spatial processing and develop spatial memory approximately 4 years earlier than women. Women have more white matter, a larger corpus collusum (which allows women greater ability to process certain information using both sides of the brain) and have relatively smaller lateral ventricles making them more vulnerable to concussions.

Women have more cortex dedicated to verbal word processing and typically develop language and fine motor skills 6 years earlier than men. Approximately 20% of women and 14% of men are “bridge brains” which means they have characteristics of both genders.

Ok, how is all this esoteric stuff relevant to your next department meeting? Men, who are more likely to be very linear and goal directed, usually desire to stay “on task” and may get impatient if the discussion veers off their envisioned path. Women, on the other hand, are often able to see tangential connections and can get frustrated if their points, which they believe can potentially impact the desired outcome, are prematurely dismissed. As a concrete example, a few years ago Jeannette and a senior male colleague were going to collaborate on a research project to compare the use of rectal and oral contrast in appendicitis. His approach was to do a series of sequential relatively simple and straightforward studies. Jeannette thought, however, that they would have a greater understanding of their conclusions if they invested the time and resources upfront to develop a large intradepartmental data base

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and then study several questions simultaneously. If their goal was to publish three papers in three years, realistically they could have achieved it by either approach, but because they did not fully understand and appreciate the other’s mindset, they both became frustrated and ultimately shelved the project.

There are also differences in the way that men and women handle stress. Until a decade ago about 90% of studies concerning stress responses were done on men and it was just assumed that the results could be cut and pasted onto women. Shelley Taylor challenged this notion, however, when she suggested that a fight or flight response may be unrealistic for many women and suggested a more adaptive response would be to “tend and befriend”. She argues that women would have an evolutionary advantage if at times of stress they were able to collectively pool resources and support each other.

Women also use language differently. On average, when you combine talking, reading and writing, women use more words per day.

Concerning social media, the average teen girl texts 135 times per day; while boys text 88 times per day. Women are also generally more proficient in nonverbal language and more likely to identify subtle facial cues appropriately.

These gender differences in communication can easily affect our working lives. Because women are wired for relationships, difficulties can arise when “content” conflict, is misinterpreted as “relationship” conflict. For example, say you are a female physician who ordered antibiotics on a patient during a busy shift. When you finally notice that they still have not been given, you go up to the nurse and ask, “Why haven’t you hung those antibiotics, I ordered them an hour ago?” As we work in a professional world and many of us have been coached and trained by male physicians we likely view this wording as perfectly reasonable. What we have failed to consider, however, is the possibility that the question may be interpreted totally differently.

An overworked nurse may quickly personalize it, and perceive its meaning not as a consideration of system or issues (EMR, stocking antibiotics, etc) but one of personal competency. It is quite possible she is thinking, “Can you believe she just asked me why I didn’t get to those antibiotics?! Hasn’t she noticed all the sick patients I’ve got right now?

That %&@(! acts as if I’ve been sitting around eating bon bons!” The female doctor may do better if she rephrases her question to, “Annie, I know you are working your tail off, but Ms X is pretty sick, can you help me understand what is going on with her antibiotics?” Yes, it is a simple bit of wordsmithing, but it validates the nurse’s contributions, reinforces your professional relationship and focuses on solvable “content” issues.

When women are working with other women, in certain circumstances the use of word “buffering” may also help facilitate communication. By consciously toning down their statements and using phrases like ”I was wondering what would happen if… or “maybe we should consider that….,” women can create a more even playing field where collaboration trumps hierarchical position.

Ironically, this same strategy can backfire if applied by a woman in a traditional male setting. In this scenario, buffering may be perceived as a sign of doubt or lack of confidence. In addition, the woman’s ownership of her idea may be jeopardized if a male colleague repackages her message.

Ultimately, this can lead to even further miscommunication, as the woman now feels defensive and betrayed by her colleague’s behavior. Women are more likely to be successful in their communication with male colleagues by being direct and learning appropriate techniques to self promote and negotiate.

Whether dealing with men or women, it is important to consider timing and mode of conflict resolution. Sometimes it is best to let tempers cool and discuss things when everyone has a clearer head. If the issue is important resist the temptation of email and make an effort to talk with the individual face to face.

This is just a sampling of how gender differences in communication can impact our professional lives. As physician leaders we need to create environments where communication is open and comfortable as it affects our patients’ safety and our job satisfaction.

"I am not an angel... and I will not be one till I die: I will be myself."

— Charlotte Brontë (Jane Eyre)

AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

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News You Can Use

Cause of the doctor shortage: A rebuttal

Pointing the blame at women physicians strays from reality

By Theresa Rohr-Kirchgraber, MD, Julie Welch, MD, July 25, 2011 (Click Here for Link)

The recent New York Times article "Don't quit this day job" by Karen S. Sibert, MD, an anesthesiologist in Los Angeles, California, makes some excellent points in recognizing that the number of physicians needed to provide care for the U.S. population is woefully inadequate.1 Where she strays from common sense and reality is to suggest that women physicians are the reason for the shortage. Women physicians make up the majority of trainees in the primary care fields of family practice, internal medicine, and pediatrics. As the need for these fields grow, does it make sense, as Sibert implies, to limit the admittance into medical school of the one group that is becoming the primary providers of care?

In the 1970s, women were 12% of the physician workforce; by 2006, that amount increased to 27.8%. According to the American Academy of Medical Colleges (AAMC) 2009-2010 report, women now make up to 48% of the medical students and 46% of residents in training.2 In June 2006, the AAMC called for a 30% increase in the number of entering medical students by 2015.3 Yes, the AAMC also noted that the new generation of physicians is not willing to work the long hours worked by physicians in the past, but this comes at the same time that the American Committee on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) instituted the 80 hour/week workforce restriction in all residency programs.4 The ACGME called for this restriction in 2003 and the number of hours trainees worked decreased dramatically. This focus on work force hours came out of the concern that tired, overworked physicians in training made mistakes and that with restrictions in hours and mandated rest time, patient care would improve. This change did not target women physicians or certain specialties; it was mandated across the board.

Although these restrictions started at the training level, the impact has moved to the practitioner level. During a student's and resident's education and training, there is a focus on a limited number of hours at work that is mandated. Why then would one leave training and go against that training by working 100+ hours/week? It is not the women physicians who have mandated this rule, as Sibert suggests, but the governing body for medical education. Therefore, to blame women physicians for the physician shortage is a very simplistic, shortsighted argument that does not take into account the realistic aspects of changes in training.

SINGLE, NEGATIVE GENDER MESSAGE

Sibert leaves out many important conclusions from the annual Physician

Retention Surveys by the American Medical Group Association (AMGA).5 By only focusing on women physicians who work part time or leave the profession, she succeeds in sending a single, negative gender message and leaves out many significant conclusions. The AMGA survey focuses on physician retention, including physician satisfaction and ways to address physician needs.

Donald Fisher, PhD, CAE, AMGA, president and chief executive officer, comments on the 2010 survey: "Although shortages still persist in today's physician work force, we have seen exponential growth in the size of medical groups, many of which are taking the lead in developing new care models that will increase patient access and keep physician satisfaction and retention high. Medical groups are actively addressing the needs of physicians throughout their careers, providing mentoring and leadership opportunities, and flexible work options."

It is not women physicians alone who strive for balance, but physicians as a whole.

Women physicians opened the conversation about work-life balance out of necessity for flexible career options, with 85% of married female physicians having children and more than 50% giving birth to their first child during residency.6 Additionally, 76% of women physicians report greater domestic responsibilities, especially in dual-physician couples, doing the majority of childcare and household management.6 More female physicians (95%) have spouses who work outside the home compared with male physicians (60%).7 However, this corresponds with 72% of male physicians now reporting a struggle to find balance between home and work, up from 12% in 1979.6 'PART-TIME' PHYSICIAN IS A MISNOMER

The part-time physician that Sibert describes is a misnomer. Many "part-time" physicians work 40+ hours/week, what most Americans think of as full-time! They dedicate extra time to administrative responsibilities, teaching, researching, and mentoring, on top of their "part-time" clinical patient hours.

Sibert concludes her criticism of doctors who consider work-life balance or parttime options with a troubling statement: "I think it's fine if journalists or chefs or lawyers choose to work part time or quit their jobs altogether. But it's different for doctors.

Someone needs to take care of the patients."

Why is it different for doctors? Doctors have the same family and societal expectations as any other professional as wives, husbands, mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters. Her implication that doctors must sacrifice their own work-life balance for the patient's sake is completely

irrational. We would argue that patients actually suffer in the long run if doctors ignore their personal self-care and neglect their own work-life balance and happiness. Statistics actually show that physicians face equal to higher rates of divorce, alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, anxiety, and suicide as the general population.8

The AMGA survey implies that worklife balance and career flexibility are not merely gender issues, but are male and generational issues as well.5 "Younger doctors of both genders are making the same demands that were once the domain of young mothers in medical practice," commented Joseph Scopelliti, MD, in 2009, an expert on the annual Physician Retention Survey by the AMGA.

Alice Hohl, reporting on the study, writes, "According to the study, full-time [male physicians] over age 55 and part-time [female physicians] under age 39 are at greatest risk for leaving.8 The upside of the poor economy is that many older physicians are staying on parttime, or delaying retirement entirely, according to the study," Scopelliti says. "The big issue— and everyone is struggling with it—is the generational factor."

The major difference between younger doctors and older ones, according to the AGMA survey, is workplace culture expectations that relate to work-life balance.

Many younger physicians want limited on-call hours and predictable schedules. "The main thing that I've taken away is that organizations...need to learn flexibility. If you're going to be successful, you need to be flexible in how you organize work schedules," Scopelliti says.9

Sibert comments that it is a waste to the taxpayer if the physician does not work full time seeing patients. Yes, the costs of a medical education are borne partly by the state in most institutions, but the loan debt for a student today can be more than $200,000, hardly a free ride.10 If physicians were required to only see patients, how then would we discover new medications and techniques? Many female physicians work in research and education. We are managers of healthcare organizations, leaders in healthcare policy, members of legislatures, and community activists. The medical degree (MD or DO) can be used for many useful purposes, of which one is seeing and caring for patients. Restricting physicians to only one purpose negates the wealth of knowledge and expertise that can be helpful for an even larger section of the population. The path to lessen the physician shortage should be to promote flexibility in work-life balance for all physicians, and to increase the overall number of physicians by increasing enrollment of U.S. students in U.S. medical schools.

AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

News You Can Use

The Mommy Wars, Medical Edition

Women: less worthy of the privilege of a medical education?

Published on June 13, 2011 by Michelle Au, M.D. in a blog entitled This Won't Hurt a Bit (Click Here for Full Entry) An Excerpt: “On June 11th, The New York Times ran an Op-Ed written by Dr. Karen S. Sibert entitled, "Don't Quit This Day Job." Everyone should take the time to read the piece in full, but to summarize: it laments the national shortfall in the physician workforce, and places the blame squarely on the shoulders of female physicians, who because of their proclivity to bear and raise children, are "less productive" than their male counterparts.

The medical field has only in the past few decades moved beyond an institutionalized gender bias. Dr. Sibert's own article states that while almost half of medical school graduates last year were women, men still make up 70% of the doctors in this country, a historical holdover from a time where virtually all doctors were men.

These days, more and more women are entering medical school--bright, hardworking, sensitive students who entered medicine to help people and do Dr. Sibert is to be commended for her good. Should these doctors be held to a commitment to the practice of medicine, different standard than their male and for finding a work-life balance she feels counterparts, as Dr. Sibert suggests? was successful for her and her own family. Should women who choose to have However, I found the article a vast children be thought of as less committed, oversimplification of the issues it less worthy of the honor of a medical highlighted, simultaneously glossing over education, or as a drain on the system? It's the difficulties and misplacing focus on an a slippery slope when you start penalizing issue that beleaguers not only the modern people for the desire or potential to medical workplace, but our society as a reproduce, and from there it's a short step whole. to discouraging women from becoming

doctors at all.

Like Dr. Sibert, I am an anesthesiologist.

Also like Dr. Sibert, I have children, and work full-time in a busy and high-acuity private practice. But as a woman in medicine, I find her views sexist, inflammatory, and frankly discouraging, and I can only hope she has not turned a crop of bright, young potential doctors away from the field entirely simply in her assessment that, to be truly worthy, a life of medicine must exist to the exclusion of all else. The face of medicine is changing, and the culture of medicine must change along with it.

Instead of pointing the finger at women doctors for being the reason for the shortfall in physician numbers and productivity, it might first be helpful to examine the circumstances under which parents feel like they need to go part-time or leave medicine altogether--a decision which, after almost a decade of training (and sometimes more), I can't imagine anyone would take lightly. In medicine, you can treat the symptoms all that you want, but there is no cure until you can identify the underlying cause.”

As a female physician myself, I have agonized my share over the decisions I've made both in and out of the hospital, and I can't help but sometimes feel that its an all-or-none proposition; that one needs to be either fully committed to medicine or fully committed to parenting, or else fail at both and flourish in neither. It's part of the pervasive societal shaming of women for the choices they make--mothers that work outside the home are abandoning their children, women who stay home to raise their children are cop-outs who have squandered the feminist victories of the generation before, and women who try to do both are doing a half-assed job all around. It's no wonder, really, that women, far more than men, feel pressure to opt out of one path in favor of the other.

Which brings me to the next, most obvious point: male doctors have children too, don't they?...”

Dr. Michelle Au is an anesthesiologist at St. Joseph's Hospital of Atlanta. Her first book, "This Won't Hurt a Bit (and Other White Lies): My Education in Medicine and Motherhood" is a memoir about the modern medical training process.

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“News You Can Use” features interesting and useful articles or books recommended or written by one of our members.

AWAEM AWARENESS July-August, 2011

Available Committees for 2011-2012 Time to get involved!

If you are interested in helping with any of these committees, as a member or possibly leadership role, please e-mail the Chair so you can be included. If you do not hear from the Chair within a week (or no Chair is listed) please contact Stephanie Abbuhl (stephane.abbuhl@uphs.upenn.edu) as sometimes messages do get lost in the cyberspace of e-mail land.

Membership Chair: Neha Raukar nraukar@gmail.com Co-Chair: Tracy Sanson

AWAEM Guidelines & Policies Chair: Gloria Kuhn gkuhn@med.wayne.edu Co-Chairs: Esther Choo, Sue Watts Awards Chair: Kinjal Sethuraman kinjal.sethuraman@gmail.com Mentor: Michelle Biros biros001@umn.edu E-Communications Chair: Stacey Poznanski stacey.poznanski@gmail.com Co-Chair: Leila Getto Mentor: Gloria Kuhn Medical School Initiatives Chair: Preeti Jois preetijois@ufl.edu Co-Chair: Keme Carter Mentor: Bob Hockberger

Regional Mentoring Chair: Linda Druelinger ldruelin@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu Mentor: Kerry Broderick Research Chair: Marna Greenberg: mrgdo@ptd.net Co-Chairs: Esther Choo, Julie Welch

SAEM Meeting Initiatives Chair: Alyson McGregor amcgregormd@gmail.com Co-Chairs: Esther Choo, Preeti Jois, Basmah Safdar, Julie Welch, Jeanette Wolfe AWAEM Development Chair: Maybe You?

“I’m a woman of very few words, but lots of action.”

Mae West

Many Photos found via Google Images. For a list of Photo Credits, please contact Stacey Poznanski, DO at stacey.poznanski@gmail.com

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