I serve as Division Chief for Pediatric Hospital Medicine at Vanderbilt. I am also a physician-scientist with a research program centered on improving care and outcomes for children with pneumonia and other acute respiratory illnesses.

Listen! Recognize and acknowledge implicit biases and male privilege. Celebrate and promote the achievements of your women colleagues. Sponsor women and avoid ‘manels’. Be intentional about equity—partner with women to set measurable goals and use data to track progress.

It’s a work in progress! Women are underrepresented in research and leadership. For example, women physician-scientists make up less than 1/3 of NIH grant holders, yet women comprise approximately half of the physician work force (even more in our field). As a researcher, I am trying to change this—of my current and former mentees, >60% are women and 20% are from racial and ethnic groups underrepresented in medicine. A similar approach is needed to increase women’s voices in leadership. Of our division’s 8 leaders, 75% are women, and their voices and diverse perspectives are immensely beneficial. Equity is also highlighted as one of our division’s 3 aspirational core values. Thus, equity factors prominently in all our decision-making.

Lazy weekend coffee on the porch!