by Diane W. Shannon | Oct 5, 2021 | Gender, Humanizing Medicine
By Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH; Nadia Obaed, Dieula John, MD; C. Elena Cervantes, MD; and Miriam Zylberglait Lisigurski, MD Thirty-five years ago, as a first-year student, I (DWS) wrote an article for my medical school’s student-run newspaper titled, “Sexism in Medical... 
by Diane W. Shannon | Sep 29, 2021 | Gender, Thriving
Caren, 37, is a pediatrician with two daughters, 11-months-old and 3-years-old. She’s married to an orthopedic surgeon who’s in surgery 3 days a week. They moved to the state 5 months ago and have no family members or close friends in the area. Both daughters attend a... 
by Diane W. Shannon | Mar 4, 2021 | Culture, Gender, Humanizing Medicine
A month or so ago, I came across a social media post about a new children’s book. My children are young adults, not yet parents—so why did I immediately order the book and eagerly await its arrival? And when I had the slim paperback in my hands, why I place it on the... 
by Diane W. Shannon | Jan 22, 2021 | Gender, Thriving
In a previous post, I recognized lactation support for women physicians as an equity issue. Many of the women physicians I’ve interviewed have identified returning to work while breastfeeding as a major challenge and a major source of stress. Providing accommodations... by Diane W. Shannon | Nov 6, 2020 | Gender, Humanizing Medicine, Thriving
I’ve been speaking with women physicians about the top challenges they face today. I’ve learned there are many—which honestly didn’t surprise me, given that 48 precent of women physicians report burnout symptoms (compared with 37 percent of their male... 
by Diane W. Shannon | Jan 8, 2020 | Gender, Understanding Burnout
Burnout prevalence is 20 to 60 percent higher among women physicians than their male colleagues. Understanding why women physicians are burning out is important for identifying effective ways to address the problem. Here’s my take on the underlying causes: 1. Women...