Eyeworld

mentors, in the clinical realm, in re- search, and in leadership. The sup- port and enthusiasm of a loving spouse or partner cannot be under- stated. Dr. Chang: What can we do to bet- ter tap into the tremendous leader- ship potential from our large pool of talented women ophthalmologists? Dr. O'Brien: We need to encourage and model success as women leaders in academic ophthalmology. Men- toring in all aspects of life is essen- tial to the success of the next generation of women leaders. We need to accept that women lead dif- ferently from men and that women leaders provide complimentary styles and influences as they ad- vance within departments and within the larger academic ophthal- mology community. Dr. Day: That is the easiest question: Just give women a chance! Measure by non-traditional yardsticks. Look at capabilities from different angles: Can a person build consensus? Is a person an effective listener? Are the person's values solid and ones that society is demanding of the medical profession? Can the person build a team? Just one more thought: There will be a day when the issue of equality for women in medicine and in ophthalmology will not be an issue. We all need to keep our eyes on other groups that similarly do not have as easy a road to become a leader. Let's all keep working on this—and medicine will be better off for it. Thank you so much for bring- ing this issue into visibility for your constituency. Dr. Higginbotham: Organizations in ophthalmology such as AUPO should develop leadership develop- ment programs for women who are interested in advancing in academia. Such programs can expose women to opportunities to shadow depart- ment chairs, deans, and others in ac- ademia to experience firsthand what is involved. There can also be formal training related to financial manage- ment and organizational develop- ment so that future women leaders have the necessary skills. Women faculty should tap into the resources of the faculty development offices within their medical schools to learn more about programs offered by AAMC, ELAM, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Last but not least, the engagement of executive coaches for women academicians should be encouraged. Dr. Miller: It is important to provide networking opportunities and men- toring, and several organizations are making an effort to provide these specifically for women. These organ- izations include Women In Ophthal- mology, Ophthalmology Women Leaders, Women in Eye and Vision Research, and Women in Retina. Several of these organizations are relatively new and the impact of their efforts has not yet been real- ized. Other organizations, like AUPO, AOS, and other professional organizations, need to think about opportunities within their own structure. Department chairs need to spend considerable effort identifying opportunities for their trainees and faculty, including speaking opportu- nities, support for meeting atten- dance, networking opportunities, as well as grants and awards. Women in leadership positions carry an ad- ditional responsibility to support and encourage their junior col- leagues. EW Contact information Day: days@sutterhealth.org Higginbotham: eve.higginbotham@howard.edu Miller: joan_miller@meei.harvard.edu O'Brien: joan.obrien@uphs.upenn.edu EW Ophthalmology Business 54 August 2011 The shortage continued from page 53 50-55 OB_EW August 2011-FINAL_Layout 1 7/27/11 3:52 PM Page 54

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