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AMSA Women's Empowerment Institute
Individual Empowerment
Through
Community Development
February 20-23, 2009, Washington, DC
Apply now to become the coordinator of this Institute.
Check back soon. We will be accepting applications this fall.
 Although more women are pursuing a medical education, gender inequalities persist within healthcare professions. The dearth of women is most glaring in more competitive fields: women comprise only 2% of MD faculty in orthopaedic surgery and 30% of general surgery residents. A little over 1/10th of medical school deans are women. The under-representation of minority women is particularly striking. Among female physicians, only 4% are Black, 2% Hispanic, and 0.2% Native American, although they constitute 14.8%, 13.4% and 1.5%, respectively, of the total population.
The lack of women in leadership positions within medicine is detrimental to both women's health and the medical profession as a whole. The Women's Empowerment Institute (WEI) is designed to address this disparity by training a diverse group of female medical students in skills necessary for leadership, developing projects to promote women's leadership in medicine and fostering a network of future leaders to provide ongoing support and development.
DESCRIPTION
WEI is a 3-day leadership-building experience consisting of workshops, lectures and lobbying on Capitol Hill. Participants are then charged to put their newly acquired skills to use by developing and implementing a project on a women's health issue at their home institution or within their community by January 2009.
OBJECTIVES
The Women's Empowerment Institute aims to:
- Develop effective leadership skills, including public speaking, persuasive writing and community organisation
- Empower women to effect change within their own communities through the implementation of local projects
- Improve recognition for women's issues through advocacy training
- Influence the construction of new policies affecting women by engaging lawmakers
- Foster a network of women leaders to provide ongoing peer support and mentoring
- Assemble a diverse group of women who enhance their own knowledge and strengths through the experiences of others
If selected, you will be expected to:
- Actively plan and complete events addressing issues of women's health, including nationally recognised days
- Present on a women's health topic in your school
- Attend your regional conference
- Attend the AMSA National Convention in Houston, TX in March
- Be a resource for women within your community and in your region
References for statistics quoted
Association of American Medical Colleges, Analysis in Brief, Vol 6 No. 20, October 2006, An Overview of Women in US Academic Medicine, 2005-2006
JAMA, 6 September 2006, Vol 296 No. 9, 1164-1163,
Graduate Medical Education 2005-2006
US Census Bureau, Press Release, 17th May, 2007, Minority Population Tops 100 Million |
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FOR MORE INFORMATION
Stephanie Markle
Women's Education Coordinator
PAST PARTICIPANT QUOTES
"The energy was great!"
"Inspiring and motivating."
"[It was] nice to talk about personal experiences in a safe environment and was effective in bonding the group."
"Dynamic, down-to-earth speakers."
"Enjoyed hearing lecturers speak about community organizing; they brought up interesting issues in the healthcare field."
"Useful! I got to do research and flush out ideas with others. Small groups were helpful. Facilitators gave direction. Most of the weekend involved hands-on experiences and I was grateful for that."
"I enjoyed hearing about everyone's projects. It was nice to present and get feedback on style. Participants experience individual and group growth during the weekend. Good public speaking exercise. Positive, reciprocal exchange of ideas."
"Great opportunity to participate in lobbying."
"The weekend left me inspired to embark on a community-organizing project."
"Amazing women!"
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