/r/WomenInMedicine

Photograph via snooOG

Female physicians, residents, med students, nurses, PAs, NPs, and any other healthcare related field. Anyone and everyone is welcome!

This is a place for females in medicine and any healthcare field to discuss pertinent topics, provide support, and build a supportive network for one another.

this is no way related to the "Women in Medicine" organization

/r/WomenInMedicine

1,029 Subscribers

2

Prenuptial / marrying lower income man

For those who are married to a husband with lower income, did you have a prenuptial?

What are some recommended key points for prenuptial, to protect your assets in event of divorce?

How would you split your finances normally in the home?

How do you keep the marriage healthy so that the man is not insecure or unhappy and feeling "less of a man"?

Right now, my boyfriend is chivalrous and pays for everything. He's masculine and I love that about him. Worried about change in dynamic once money comes into play more.

He makes a good salary but much less than mine (maybe 1/3).

3 Comments
2023/06/27
00:46 UTC

3

Help me to help you! :)

If you or someone you know is a woman in healthcare who's feeling overwhelmed, overstressed, overweight.... please take 5 minutes to help me create a solution for our growing concerns! (because i know the Administrator-prescribed "self care" is not cutting it for me & my colleagues!)

https://forms.gle/PnK426nFh4C9ca2WA

Thank you in advance!!

0 Comments
2022/04/01
03:39 UTC

2

Looking ahead

Hi everyone,

I would like to ask for people's insight with regards to pursuing a career in medicine. My primary goal since childhood has been becoming an MD - however, the more I grow older, the more I am increasingly unsure about that possibility. First, it would require a lot of time - I'm not necessarily concerned about that, but it means that these next few years would be filled, and obviously I know that this is a given and I will have to sacrifice this if I decide to pursue the career. I also am not sure how much I would enjoy working in a clinical setting. For example, I have an overwhelming guilt problem and I would expect myself to be constantly questioning whether or not I gave the correct diagnoses, and I can see it potentially affecting my mental health severely. With news of the match this week, I also am disillusioned by the fact that so many deserving doctors face these arbitrary obstacles and go unmatched. Also, student loans - there is no way that I would feel good having $400,000+ of debt to my name.

But my passion is in healthcare. I just don't know what it will look like yet. I am looking to attend grad school in the field of public health within the next few years hopefully, but I want to enter a fulfilling career where I am actually making a difference in the field and not just dealing in semantics - I am passionate about maternal and child health, as well as global health, and epidemiology, but I also am concerned about it being a viable career that will provide me with a stable income if that makes sense. I could see myself potentially being a professor, but I don't want that to be the entirety of my career because I actually want to do real stuff if that makes sense. Does anyone have any job suggestions, job titles, etc. that I should look towards, anywhere I should look to for guidance? Thanks in advance.

1 Comment
2022/03/18
03:47 UTC

4

Mom or med school

I’m a senior in my last semester of my undergrad. I have the plan of finishing up my pre reqs for med school and taking the MCAT. Previous to the last couple months I longed to go to med school and be a pediatric or family medicine physician. I’ve recently just turned 22 and have been with my now boyfriend for about a year. In the last few months I’ve had a strong longing to be a mother, even more than before. I want babies and to start my life. I know that being a physician and a mother is completely possible but it’s sad to think that if we’re planning on kids, I still have 7-8 years till I’ll have them. For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to be a doctor and felt at one point that nothing was going to stand in my way of that happening, now I’m not so sure. I feel like I could go back to school and get my RN and also be a mother much sooner in life. Is this just a phase or a change of heart??

3 Comments
2021/12/06
11:09 UTC

1

Mom or med school

I’m a senior in my last semester of my undergrad. I have the plan of finishing up my pre reqs for med school and taking the MCAT. Previous to the last couple months I longed to go to med school and be a pediatric or family medicine physician. I’ve recently just turned 22 and have been with my now boyfriend for about a year. In the last few months I’ve had a strong longing to be a mother, even more than before. I want babies and to start my life. I know that being a physician and a mother is completely possible but it’s sad to think that if we’re planning on kids, I still have 7-8 years till I’ll have them. For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to be a doctor and felt at one point that nothing was going to stand in my way of that happening, now I’m not so sure. I feel like I could go back to school and get my RN and also be a mother much sooner in life. Is this just a phase or a change of heart??

1 Comment
2021/12/06
11:06 UTC

8

Hi...I could use some help...

I kind of stumbled into this subreddit trying to find a way to reach out to someone in medicine because I am having some difficulties relating to my career and personal life. I don't want to get into too much detail, to avoid being identified. I can say it isn't legal trouble, and nothing that will incriminate or put the other person in a tight spot. I just want to talk to someone that understands what it is like to be in medicine.

I'm hoping this is the right place to reach out. Anyone who is willing to listen can message me or comment here and I'll message you.

Thank you, to anyone who is reading.

3 Comments
2021/09/18
18:18 UTC

5

Combination feeding

Any women in medicine combination feeding? I am supplementing and it seems the older my baby gets the more formula and less breast milk she consumes (currently 3 months). I feel terrible supplementing as I know first hand all the benefits of exclusively breast feeding but my attempts to increase my supply have taken a toll on my health. Is she still getting benefits from being 50% breast fed?

3 Comments
2021/08/19
15:16 UTC

3

Paperwork/Less savory things question

Hi,

I'm not sure if this is the right subreddit to post this question but I am woman so lol. I'm a premed student looking to apply to medical schools next summer. I've been debating about Anesthesia PA school (CAA essentially) and medical school. My largest concern is how much hands-on work you actually get to do as a physician. I hate the idea of doing paperwork, being on the phone with insurance companies, spending a lot of time on computers (EHR, etc.), and dealing with administration. I'm not sure if this is true but it seems like CAAs (who don't practice autonomously) don't have to deal with those things as much. I'm scared to put myself through 8 years of medical training (school + residency) to end up with a career dominated by the things I mentioned above. I don't mind making the sacrifices to become a doctor if I'm not dealing with those things too much during and after. I don't think I'll have a career in surgery as I'm not sure I like it (based on shadowing experiences) but I have heard surgical specialties deal with those things less. Ideally, I'd like to work in a hospital so I don't plan on having my own practice. A lot of threads on Reddit and SDN make it sound like a physician's workload is dominated by a lot of other things besides direct patient care. A career in healthcare where I don't have to deal with those things too much is really important to me. To be clear, I'd be fine with those things if they took up less than 40%-50% of my day (ideally, less than 30%) but I'm not sure that's how it works. I'm in the U.S. and plan to stay.

  1. I guess I'm mainly trying to ask what percent of your day do you deal with a lot of paperwork, hassling with insurance companies, time on computer, and dealing with administration? Please also specify if you work in a hospital or in your own practice (idk if there is a difference here but maybe?)
  2. Are there certain specialities (FM, Peds, Card, etc) that have to deal with those things more than others, or is it about the same?
  3. Do you see physicians having to deal with those things more in the future?
  4. And finally, how much do CAAs (that work under the anesthesiologist) have to deal with those things? Is it about the same, less, or more?

When I shadowed a surgeon, I didn't see too much of those things. I do plan on shadowing someone in a non-surgical specialty to also get a better idea but I would love your input as well. Thank you!

1 Comment
2021/08/16
15:50 UTC

0

I am a female medical student starting a blog. Any advice? Check it out!

0 Comments
2021/08/03
17:21 UTC

6

How to female dr. Handle medical school and having kids?

I am a finance non traditional medical candidate. I am 24 looking at 26 to enter medical school because all mcat testing centers were full. My partner and I want to have kids. Just wondering is it possible to have kids in medical school or residency. Do you recommend it? What did you do? Also considering PA just because after I have a kid I have more time off. But I would be happier as a dr because that is something I always wanted to do.

0 Comments
2021/07/26
11:28 UTC

5

New to primary care, looking for advice on building professional relationships!

Hi!

I'm a psychology PhD student starting a yearlong training position at an outpatient primary care setting.

I've only really been in psych focused settings before (community mental health, student counseling) so I feel a bit out of my element. I'm also just not great at knowing how to behave/build relationships in office settings in general. (I feel like that stems from my tendency to be either all work or all play, with a hard time balancing or blending the two in one setting.)

I was hoping to get some advice on what to expect, or any tips to better fit in and build good work relationships. For those who work in healthcare settings, what helped or hindered you? How would you advise someone new to the setting?

Thanks in advance!

1 Comment
2021/07/12
04:24 UTC

14

Sexually Harassed at Work By Patient

I experienced something at work today that I haven't before. I greeted a known middle-aged male patient in the exam room as my MA checked on the status of his medication prior auth on a busy Friday morning. When I reached out to touch his shoulder in a gesture of 'hello,' he reached around and pulled me into a forced and prolonged hug, rubbing my back in the process. I pushed back more gently than I should have, signalling that I did not welcome the tight embrace. He responded by continuing to hold me too close and kissed my cheek, then proceeding to try and remove my mask while going on about how it is his birthday tomorrow. I pushed away firmly and said I wouldn't be removing my mask, extricating myself from his hold. The sensation of diagust immediately settled in my stomach. Had I done something to give him the impression that his actions were welcomed? What were his intentions? Why did I come into the room without my MA? He has been very friendly in the past. I froze mentally, finding myself unable to say the reprimand I wanted to. 'That was unwelcome and inappropriate behavior, and we won't tolerate it in this office.' Simple words, but hard to say in that moment. I briskly rushed through the visit without addressing the behavior. I blame myself now for not saying anything. I was rewarded for my silence by him touching my knee saying that I "look nice in my scrubs, but I should be wearing something more elegant." I stepped out, saying my MA would be in to let him know about the prior auth status. I told her what happened, and that she shouldn't return to the room alone. Although apparently shocked, she replied, "Well, he's never treated me that way, so I guess I'm ok." I told my fellow PAs in the office about what happened, and although they were sympathetic and my male colleague was more than willing to see the patient for future visits, I felt their reaction was more to try and lighten the mood than address the issue. This was sexual harassment. I informed or office manager that I would no longer be seeing the patient and her response was, "I'm sorry that happened to you," but there was no discussion of any action to be taken. My partner came to see me for lunch, where he comforted me that my reaction, my freezing, was normal, and that I shouldn't feel bad for my response. He was upset at what occurred, and he told me to make sure I informed my supervising physician. When I was off work this evening, I called my supervising physician who works in another state to inform him of what occurred. His immediate response was that we would be firing the patient from the practice due to his inexcusable and inappropriate behavior. It.... was a relief, but at the same time, I wonder if my inability to respond to the patient's actions will make it difficult to defend the reasoning for the patient's dismissal. I feel like I didn't do what was needed, and while I'm upset that my personal boundaries were crossed, I'm more frustrated that I didn't defend myself. I don't know what I'm seeking in posting here, but I appreciate your time for reading this.

3 Comments
2021/06/05
04:10 UTC

8

Dr. Susan Koven MD publishes "Letter to a Young Female Physician: Notes from a Medical Life"

0 Comments
2021/05/24
17:02 UTC

2

Baby in daycare

I was planning on putting my 4 month old in daycare in sept but I’m concerned about these new relaxed mask mandates, whether daycare workers will continue to mask, and what that means for unvaccinated children. Curious to hear what others think/ are doing. I would much prefer daycare to a nanny, but not if it’s unsafe.

3 Comments
2021/05/20
02:45 UTC

7

Mature Oocyte Cryopreservation

Hello, I am a pre-med student in my 3rd year at school and my anatomy professor told me about how some of their colleagues did this procedure of freezing their eggs, because of how long it takes to go through medical school. I know that my mother struggled with fertility when she had me and my brother (she was in her 30-40s). I just want to know some more opinions from physicians and maybe some stories on other women in medicine who may have done this and their experience with it. I do want to have a family in the future but knowing my moms history I’m a bit concerned. Any thoughts? Thanks :))

1 Comment
2021/05/04
17:34 UTC

7

mom MA looking for shadowing physicians

I was wondering if anyone can share with me tips in finding shadowing opportunities during covid? I have been asking my doctors if I can shadow them and they all turned me away because of covid.

Is there any particular way I should be approaching physicians in private clinic to convince them about letting me shadow and ease their minds regarding the possibility of covid transmission?

I was planning to start by telling them that I was vaccinated in January as a phase 1 worker; I have been working in research for many years and now work as MA so I am very good with PPE, HIPAA regulation; I can provide my own PPE whether it is N95, face shield, goggle, disposable gown etc. Basically I am happy to do whatever to find a shadowing opportunity, because it is so hard to find one right now.

Thanks so much!

Edit: I'm looking for shadowing opportunities hoping to apply to med school next year.

12 Comments
2021/04/20
15:46 UTC

6

HELP: Studying Medical Gender Bias for Research in Women's Health

Hello everyone! I am studying further into the topic of health for women and how gender bias can play a role. Because of personal experiences, and experiences of friends and family, I am studying the impacts of gender bias. I am conducting an interview to get further insight. You can participate if you are female, ages 18-35, and living in the South of the U.S. If you choose to participate, your voice will be heard and will truly contribute to addressing this issue in women's health. Thank you in advance. Please comment any questions or concerns, or email me (information in the link).

Here is the link: https://forms.gle/1tJEyYM4ihLtde5K7

0 Comments
2021/03/25
07:44 UTC

9

Salary Transparency For Doctors

(mods please delete if this goes against guidelines)

Hey everyone!

Transparency in pay is something that is becoming more and more important and popular in the industry today. A website called levels.fyi has taken the tech world by storm by providing salary information for Software Engineers, Product Managers, and UX Designers at the top FAANG companies in an anonymous way. This lets people in the tech field know if they're being paid fairly based on the company they're at and location.

That got me thinking, why not do the same thing for doctors and do it in a way where they don't have to pay to see how much other doctors make (through sites like MGMA where you have to pay to get that data). So I created medlevels.fyi where you can see how much doctors make by specialization, years of experience, location, and many other factors. If you'd like to contribute you can do so by filling out the form on the site as well! This is 100% free to use and is meant to create transparency in compensation for doctors.

7 Comments
2021/03/06
08:08 UTC

7

How do you push forward when dealing with trauma or family circumstances.

How do you keep up with demands of working in healthcare when you’re faced with something traumatizing or dealing with stressful times.

2 Comments
2021/02/20
13:47 UTC

4

Do you experience harassment in your workplace? how do you cope with it?

I’m a medical student who experienced lots of bullying and harassment in college. It negatively impacted my learning and practice as both my mental and physical health were badly effected.

I am wondering If female doctors too have to face this problem in their workplace and how to stop it if the answer is yes.

0 Comments
2021/02/20
13:31 UTC

19

Imposter-syndrome, residency, and unsupportive family

Long, emotional, vent-type post ahead:

Hi all, this is my first post. I just need a bit of support and encouragement from the people who have survived this before.

A few months ago, I posted about my struggles on a different group with building professional confidence. While I still struggle with self-doubt often, I feel that I have made considerable headway in working on my knowledge base. It's always a work in progress. At times, I wonder if these feelings I struggle with with, while born in my own mind, are amplified by the gendered conflicts between societal and personal expectations for women in academic medicine. I try to separate work from my personal life, but today I happen to let it slip to my spouse that I was anxious, facing a particularly challenging monthlong rotation ahead and that I needed some extra protected time to study, and less time taking care of the house and our child. His response was, "you exaggerate everything you do, so how am I supposed to know if what you're doing is actually hard?". Needless to say, I was fuming. Sadly, these kinds of jibes are pretty common from him, my brother, and my parents who still have some trouble believing I actually *might* be good at my job. (Or should I say, might not? as the little nagging voice in my head says).

The pandemic hasn't been easy on either of us, but it doesn't help that neither my spouse (in medicine) nor my parents, nor my siblings, nor my friends (none in medicine) take my commitment to being a better physician very seriously and instead mock my cooking and cleaning shortcuts. They do this knowing I am balancing a demanding residency while taking care of a toddler and arranging childcare logistics and health visits during a pandemic alone in a city where I don't know anyone. I physically cannot take care of my family, my patients, and myself without shortcuts.

With my current hours, I maybe have 1.5 hours a day of free time to myself including time to shower. Lately, I have been feeling very down (COVID, young trauma patients, and hard decisions to make at work) and took some time this week after my son's bedtime to watch some crappy TV and drink a glass of wine, while knocking out exam questions. Yes, I know--not effective. I woke up late (8:30) by mistake on my off day yesterday. I tried to wake up early and help with the AM routine today but couldn't get to a single practice exam question until noon. I felt like I was caring for my son in a distracted sort of way, because the exam is just looming in my mind and I hated that. I've already spoken to my husband about his comments and how they made me feel, but feel like his apology was so half-assed and insincere that I'm still mad about it.

I remember the times where HIS parents AND MY parents flew up to help watch our infant son on an alternating while I was in residency so that he did not need to lift a finger while preparing for an exam. They did not do this for ANY of my board exams, ergo lots of late night studying and sleep deprivation that made my first years hell. He doesn't seem to remember that he took 6(!) months to study for his boards in my first year of residency. I just wanted two damn weeks where there wasn't some catastrophe in the house that required my attention.

While I make him seem to be this evil character in this post, he is still the guy I love, and the one who supported me throughout all of the hardest times of my life, even on my worst days. He does truly make more of an effort than most other husbands in terms of parenting, managing all of the lunches and drop-offs at daycare while I work. He is a great dad and seems to handle the stress of his job well. I just wish it could be different for how he considers my profession to his. At the very least I wish he could take my job more seriously. It would certainly help me take myself more seriously.

7 Comments
2021/01/31
20:00 UTC

7

Student Research Survey - Footwear Preferences

I am a student at UCLA. Some of my classmates and I are conducting a research project seeking to understand the footwear preferences of female healthcare professionals. We have developed a ~5 minute survey to ask you all a few questions about your experiences.

We are raffling a $50 Amazon gift card to participants! Here is a link to the survey

Note: None of your answers will be shared with any third parties or other groups. This is solely for our project.

0 Comments
2021/01/12
20:53 UTC

1

Has a patient ever turned you away for being a woman?

Hey guys, I’m just curious. I’ll be attending medical school soon and can’t help to think about the possibilities that entail being a female physician. I’m looking to anticipate what I may encounter as one so please just let me know and feel free to tell the story down below and how you get over it!

View Poll

0 Comments
2021/01/05
03:15 UTC

5

FemHealth Virtual Purpose Summit

Hi r/womeninmedicine, posting this great opportunity to learn from physicians during the FemHealth Purpose Summit starting January 18th.

This virtual summit will provide students with an inside look at the career paths of 19 female leaders in the healthcare industry - including CEOs running multi-million dollar companies and founding visionaries in the health tech space. The FemHealth Project aims to increase health equity across different populations of individuals through education, empowerment, and access to information from health professionals.

Sign up TODAY: https://learn.femhealthproject.com/a/41397/KvQuHXhE It's a great opportunity for scholarships, internships, mentorship and networking; all the things we need during COVID!

1 Comment
2021/01/05
00:36 UTC

6

Living & Working in Primary Care

Hi! My name is Niranjana Das and I’m a student research assistant at the University of Vermont. I’d like to share a study with you that may be of interest:

Dr. Jessica Clifton and Dr. Benjamin Littenberg with the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont warmly invite YOU to participate in a research study to help us better understand how Primary Care Professionals are being impacted by the current crisis (i.e., physicians, administrators and staff, behavioral health providers, managers, medical assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, nutritionists, patient service representative, pharmacists, phlebotomist, physician assistants, resource and/or care coordinators, scribes, social workers, etc.). To begin the 5-minute survey or for more information, visit: https://redcap.med.uvm.edu/surveys/?s=KHHMP89E48

0 Comments
2020/11/20
15:00 UTC

2

Careers In Medicine Survey

Hello r/WomenInMedicine!

I am a Junior at Georgia State University, and I major in Biomedical Science and Enterprise. As I explore the possible career pathways in front of me, a career in medicine became extremely intriguing. I would love to hear from your unique perspective about being a woman in the medical field, and your feedback would not only contribute to my class project but also provide guidance as I embark on my career journey.

If you would be so kind as to fill out a questionnaire about your profession, I would greatly appreciate it. It would take no more than 10 minutes, and it would provide me a fantastic insight into the life of a female medical professional.

Please reach out to me with any questions.

Careers in Medicine Survey

2 Comments
2020/11/17
13:20 UTC

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