Those three small words offer one big challenge for many physicians. Although doctors routinely counsel patients to take care of themselves, it’s easy for busy healthcare professionals to ignore the advice in their own lives.

 

For female physicians — who are often juggling a practice, caring for children, volunteering in the community, and nurturing friends and family — the challenge of finding balance is particularly daunting. To address these needs, the Tennessee Medical Association presented the inaugural “Women in Medicine Forum: Thriving in Your Practice, Family and Community” in conjunction with last month’s annual meeting. The event was coordinated by Kim Rosdeutscher, MD, a pediatrician from Hermitage, Tenn.

 

“We felt the time was right because about 50 percent of medical graduates are now women, but they are under-represented in organized medicine and in leadership,” said presenter Phyllis Miller, MD, a former TMA president who practices obstetrics and gynecology in Chattanooga. She noted the debut event was well attended and met with enthusiasm.

 

Nashville pediatrician Deborah Byer, MD, presented the first topic — “Juggling the Demands of Career and Family.” Miller said it was readily recognized that men also face balance issues and noted that there is now more of a ‘meet in the middle’ mentality as men and women both put in heavy lifting when it comes to careers, childcare, home upkeep, and community involvement. Still, Miller said, there are clearly gender differences. When things get busy for women, the first item dropped from the ‘to do’ list is typically personal time, which is key to nurturing the body, mind and spirit. “We’re taking care of everybody else but ourselves,” she said.

 

Miller presented the second topic, “Women Physicians Serving the Community.” She pointed out, “In medicine, it can be so demanding … and we’re so focused … that it can be easy to become isolated. Volunteer work, she continued, can be both stimulating and eye opening. 

 

Miller just returned from a medical mission in Haiti. “We were so busy, you hardly had time to look up. What really hit you is that the people there had nothing to begin with, and now it’s a 100 times worse.”

 

In the middle of the destruction, though, she saw life. “I delivered one baby at night by flashlight,” she recalled with a laugh. She added it looked like she’d be delivering another child by C-section under the same conditions until someone stepped in and persuaded the Japanese medical team to loan their generator to Miller.

 

Although she relishes her involvement with service boards and community projects, Miller said it’s important to know what you can do and when you can do it. “I’m at a period in life where it works well for me,” she noted, adding that her daughter is now grown so there aren’t the time constraints that are present when children are still living at home.

 

When community involvement is possible, Miller said the rewards are many. “I think it makes you a more well-rounded person. You see the bigger picture. You see what other people do and where you fit in.”

 

The final topic of the day, “How the TMA Supports Your Practice” presented by Elise Denneny, MD, ENT, from Knoxville, explored both available resources to keep practices current and a discussion of how women fit into organized medicine. Miller said that although there are now many women in medicine, representation is not proportional when it comes to leadership positions.

 

Miller has done her share to break the glass ceiling. Not only was she the first woman to serve as president of the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Medical Society and the first female chief of staff at Erlanger Medical Center, she was also the first, and so far only, woman elected president of the TMA. While more work needs to be done to ensure organizations are inclusive of women, Miller said women must also step up. “It seems culturally we sometimes wait to be asked … we want to be wanted … whereas men jump in. And again,” she noted, “it’s the time commitment. There’s only 24 hours in a day.”

 

Miller said the take-away from this inaugural forum was the realization that each person has to figure out what is right for her. The ‘correct’ balance changes at different stages of family life and career.

 

Although balance must be achieved individually, it was easy to reach broad consensus on the importance of discussing such issues. “Everybody was very enthusiastic,” Miller said of this first meeting. “We feel like this was a good beginning, and we think it will continue to grow.”