Celebrating Women in Medicine and Science at UICOMP
Introduction
In conjunction with September’s “Women in Medicine Month” created by the American Medical Association (AMA), the UICOMP Women in Medicine and Science Council (WMSC) solicited nominations of faculty members who work to support gender equality and the advancement of women in medicine. The Council recognizes these women:
Honorees
Sarah Donohue, PhD – Psychiatry
Dr. Sarah Donohue is a wonderful addition to the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine where she serves as Director of Scholarship. In this role, Dr. Donohue oversees the entire department’s research and scholarly activity while mentoring medical students, residents, and junior faculty. She helps trainees learn how to provide effective evaluations and feedback, to prepare posters, present, and seek IRB and grant approval. She is the faculty course coordinator for our Journal Review series and organizes our annual Scholarship Retreat. In addition, she has been a moderator for Grand Rounds and our quarterly Faculty Development series. She has also participated in several campus-wide activities as the department’s representative, including on the Steering Committee of the Center4Health Research and providing annual research reports for the ACGME and Dean’s office.
Monica Joseph Griffin, MD – Pediatrics
Dr. Joseph-Griffin is a senior faculty and a respected pediatric hospitalist. She has led the food insecurity screening initiative with CHOI. She led the team which started screening patients admitted to CHOI and has now extended the project to ambulatory clinics. Once the family is recognized to have food insecurity, the program will connect them with community resources and in collaboration with CHOI foundation the program offers support to the family. This is an important initiative to help vulnerable communities we serve. This program has been highlighted for its success and well-organized implementation strategy; a testament to Dr. Joseph-Griffin’s leadership.
Heather McLauchlan, MD – Pediatrics
Dr. McLauchlan is a compassionate and caring pediatrician and educator. She serves as Clerkship Director and has done a great job organizing the pediatric rotation, which has consistently been ranked amongst the best clinical experiences at UICOMP. Dr. McLauchlan has held several leadership positions including Director of CF program and is currently serving as Section Chief of Academic Pediatrics. She has ensured that our CF program delivers excellent care and meets the national benchmarks for patient outcomes. As the Section Chief of Academic Pediatrics, she has made changes to improve clinical and academic productivity. She is an excellent leader, very thoughtful and an effective advocate for the faculty and staff in her section.
Laura Brown, MD, PhD – Surgery
No one in the surgery department does more than Dr. Brown, especially for the residents. She is always working on program improvement initiatives based on resident feedback and input. She has actively involved residents in the recruitment of future residents and development of educational programs. She is also a leader in our faculty development series and feedback, and faculty meetings. She transformed a program that was on the verge of probation to one that was approved for a compliment increase and added a fellowship training program. She also started an EGS/ACS fellowship to provide guided experience for residents that have finished a program but wanted more clinical time with rapid graduated operating time alone. She has inspired several residents to get advanced critical training beyond graduation and is a role model for us all.