As intriguing as the title ‘Letter to a Young Female Physician’ by Dr.Suzanne Koven was for me; it also ranks amongst one of my most relatable reads.
The author is a primary care doctor and writer in residence at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and also, a faculty at the Harvard Medical School.
“Letter to a Young Female Physician” is a personal essay by her depicting the obstacles faced by female physicians, including her own personal struggle with “imposter syndrome”―a long-held secret belief that she was not smart enough or good enough to be a “real” doctor.
The book highlights the various phases every medico woman goes through as an intern-resident- physician-daughter-lover-mother and how despite, all the odds she tries to balance every role in her own way. For a female reader specially, it reveals a woman forging her authentic identity in a modern landscape that is as overwhelming and confusing in its possibilities. Although, I’m yet to go and grow through a lot of these phases, but I think I’m more prepared for what’s to come after reading this book.
The book also speaks volumes about the sexism, bias, harassment that women in medicine encounter on daily basis. Personally, I found the book ironic, as it made me recollect a few instances of the comments I’ve heard in my not so long journey from a few male colleagues and seniors.
To name a few:
– “You monitor the vitals; your male colleague is well built and will give a better CPR than you.”
– “Must be a turmoil to manage the hormones and the hectic duty schedule on those days of the month, no?”
– “How do you like Obstetrics? It spoils the female anatomy in my head entirely.”
-“Only a doctor partner can get our issues, why are you okay dating a non-medico?”
-“Have you given it a thought about how you’ll manage duty post marriage/kids with a night shift?”
I think gender discrimination forces imperfectly perfect women like us to constantly fight for our dreams, while living up to the high standards set by society for us. Hospital managements and academic boards are well aware of the issues faced by women in the medical fields; and efforts are being made to ensure a safe and progressive work environment. Yet, the change in attitude and practice is slow and I think, its time they accelerate their efforts.
To everyone out there, who think women aren’t as proficient doctors as men, read this book and cut the bias out!
