Month: May 2025
Two Worlds, One Marriage: The Reality of Being an Asian Female Doctor with a Non-Medical Husband
By Ching Man Carmen Tong, DO This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage (AAPI) Month. When I was asked to contribute an article for the AWS blog during AAPI month, I thought to myself– what possible musings can I offer to the readers that could be enlightening and potentially useful? Then I realized– I’m not only an Asian woman, and a doctor, but I’m an Asian female doctor married to a white male who works outside the medical profession. It is an experience full of nuance, complexity, and mutual understanding. To understand our journey and marriage, it is important for me to describe just how different my husband, Brett, and I are. Not only do we come from different cultural backgrounds - I’m Chinese and he’s Irish and Spanish - but...
Finding Joy in Food and Culture During Residency
By Dr. Victoria Prete This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. ‘Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food’ is a sentiment commonly attributed to Hippocrates and often preached in medicine, but rarely followed by residents and fellows. The stress of training, combined with limited time and access to quality food, makes prioritizing delicious meals difficult if not impossible. Like most first- and second-generation Asian-Americans, much of my life revolves around sharing food as part of a community. While I sacrifice much of myself to training, I hold onto my love of food and this link to my heritage. Food plays a pivotal role in Asian culture, serving as more than sustenance for the body; food provides a means of replenishing the soul. Throughout my life, my mother...
Training Your Subconscious Mind in Residency
By Dr. Anupama Singh This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Training my subconscious mind and building mental fortitude is a vital skill I learned at the start of my surgical residency. It molded me into a calmer person capable of adapting to any challenging situation and instilled in me a growth mindset that benefits me in all areas of my life, not just in residency. I wasn’t always like this. In high school, my friends and family labeled me as a “high-functioning anxious person.” I remember being unbothered by it. I still got the good grades and it didn’t matter if these achievements were the result of sleepless nights and spiraling, anxious thoughts that were trying to predict every outcome. That mentality was challenged when I started surgical residency,...
As a female surgeon, can I actually have a child-and when?
by Dr. Deepa Patel This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Female surgeons serving a dual role as mothers are no longer a rarity, as over one third of us have a child during residency. Despite these statistics, I continue to hear that many female medical students avoid careers in surgery as they think that pursuing such a career would hinder their ability to have children. Hearing these concerns surprises me. I have always considered my career a top priority but did know that at some point, I also wanted children. I never considered these goals in opposition. As a young attending about to have her first child within 2 years of finishing a colorectal fellowship, I have found that balancing pregnancy with a career is possible-but needs to be...
Dancing Into Destiny: The Unexpected Paths That Shape Us
By Dr. Chi Zhang This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. I was objectively terrible at dancing. My limbs felt too long, and my footwork betrayed even the simplest beat. My parents quickly unenrolled me from ballet. This was only partially because of my pleading, but they were probably relieved to no longer suffer second-hand embarrassment. While I thought my dancing career was over at the ripe age of 7, my dancing inabilities returned to haunt me when I was invited to be a part of my friend’s quinceañera. Out of obligation, and perhaps some curiosity, I accepted, unaware that this would be a turning point in my life. Unaware yet that a similar transformation would lead me to a life in the operating room. At rehearsal, as music pulsed...
Challenges Females Face in Medicine
By Camellia Russell Biological sex is an unchangeable aspect of who we are, yet it continues to shape the opportunities we encounter throughout life. Despite progress, many cultures and societies still espouse old-fashioned beliefs about gender roles, especially when it comes to leadership. In particular, women are often expected to prioritize home life over career ambitions, with roles like "leader" or "surgeon" still largely reserved for men in many fields. Medicine, in particular, has needed to evolve faster. While women now make up approximately 20-25% of surgeons in the United States, this percentage still needs to be equitable. Women surgeons often face daily challenges, from juggling demanding work schedules with motherhood and family to battling deep-seated biases. Also, many patients may look at female surgeons as less capable or skilled than their male counterparts due to long-standing gender stereotypes. According to research from the University of Kansas, women in academic...
Breaking Barriers: Women in Cardiac Surgery
This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. By Dr. Hina Inam "Women cannot be cardiac surgeons. We have bets on when you will leave." These were the words of an attending, said just a few days after I joined the Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency. I was stepping into a field where women were a rare sight, and the expectation was clear—I would not last. But I was determined to prove them wrong. I worked hard, showed what I was made of, and ultimately became the first female cardiac surgeon to graduate from my institute. It wasn’t just about proving myself; it was about paving the way for those who would follow. Since then, the landscape has started to shift. Dr. Sara Iqbal became the second female cardiac surgeon to graduate from...