When applying for residency, I prioritized programs with strong female leadership. Between the pre-interview dinner and interview day itself, I was taken by the number of impassioned, intelligent and hilarious women I met at Northwestern. My intern year was highlighted by my shifts working side by side with Northwestern’s powerhouse female physicians, and our program sponsored Women’s Nights.
As a PGY-2, I was given the chance to attend the FemInEM Feminist Idea Exchange Conference in NYC. I jumped at the opportunity and spent two days soaking up wisdom, advice and cautionary tales from national leaders in the field. Seminar topics varied widely and included skills for professional development, inherent and system wide biases, increased physician miscarriage rates, coping with childhood and workplace trauma, mommy guilt and more. I gained a new appreciation for the women across the country/world working to empower and propel females into leadership position, and those dedicating their practice to changing the status quo.
As emergency medicine providers, our careers can take us in a million directions. As a resident, it is hard to determine specific career goals without knowing the avenues available. The FIX conference provided exposure to varying professional pathways and allowed me to better define my own professional priorities and think more clearly about my career trajectory beyond the clinical practice.
Chloe Renshaw, MD - PGY2
