Throughout September, the Heersink School of Medicine Office for Diversity and Inclusion is recognizing Women in Medicine Month—a national celebration of the accomplishments of women in the fields of medicine, biomedical science and innovation, medical education, and academic medicine administration.
In Part 2 of the series, we heard from the chairs in Emergency Medicine and Dermatology. In Part 3 of the Women in Medicine month series, we learn about the work and the career journeys of three more chairs: Cheri Canon, M.D., FACR, FSAR, FAAWR, chair of the Department of Radiology; Adrienne Lahti, M.D., chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology; and Teresa Wilborn, Pharm.D., Ph.D., interim chair of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology.
Cheri Canon, M.D.
Q: What most excites you about your work?
Canon: I have always been amazed and so appreciative of UAB’s collaborative culture, and it is one of the main factors that convinced me to remain here after residency training. The highlight of my clinical day is when one of our colleagues visits the reading room for a “curbside” consult. It is then you can work to piece together a sometimes very complicated clinical picture. Pivot to my new role in the health system, I am energized by working with teams to solve those big, complex problems. I love a challenge!
Q: What other areas are you leading right now?
Canon: I just began a new role as the Chief Clinical Integration Officer for the UAB Health System. It is an exciting role working to expand UAB Medicine’s outreach. I am also co-leading the strategic planning process. It has been so rewarding to watch engaged individuals come together to chart the future of UAB Medicine.
Q: Tell me about a woman who inspired your career.
Canon: There have been so many, and that’s the strength of our networks, to provide the wisdom, mentorship, and sometimes that nurturing listening to enable women leaders. I often remind people that Major Melson Barfield-Carter, the inaugural chair of Radiology, was the first women chair at UAB!
Q: In what ways are you involved in your community?
Canon: Working in a specialty that is strongly male-dominated, I am passionate about advancing women leaders. I was in the fifth class of Birmingham Momentum and since have served on its board. And now we have UAB Momentum in Medicine to elevate our women leaders!
Q: What advice would you give to your younger self or a mentee in the early career stage?
Canon: Be patient, and things will happen in due time. Fiercely advocate for those who cannot.
Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of?
Canon: I am so proud of a program I co-founded and co-direct, LEAD (Leading, Empowering, and Disrupting). It is a joint effort with the Society of Chairs in Academic Radiology Departments (SCARD) and GE Healthcare to develop and promote women leaders in Radiology. We are about to launch the 5th cohort!
Q: What are your top 3 favorite Birmingham restaurants?
Canon: Living downtown, we have so many options within walking distance (and several great breweries, too)! I don’t have just one favorite, although I am loving La Fete right now.
Adrienne Lahti, M.D.
Q: What most excites you about your work?
Lahti: As Chair of the Department of Psychiatry, it is exciting to work and team with leaders in the Heersink School of Medicine and the hospital to provide the best psychiatric care to all patients throughout the hospital and the outpatient clinics.
Q: What other areas are you leading right now?
Lahti: I am excited about developing an early intervention program focused on identifying mental illness and substance abuse disorders early in adolescence/early adulthood to allow for appropriate interventions to prevent long term impairment and disability.
Q: What advice would you give to your younger self or a mentee in the early career stage?
Lahti: In her book “Lean In,” Cheryl Sandberg had a quote that resonated with me: “Ask yourself: What would I do if I weren’t’ afraid? And then go do it.” That is the advice I would give my younger self or mentee.
Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of?
Lahti: In addition to being a clinician, I have maintained a successful research career and have made contributions to the understanding of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia spectrum disorders through the use of human brain imaging.
Q: What are your top 3 favorite Birmingham restaurants?
Lahti: Chez Fonfon for the food, Vino for the outside terrace, Galley and Garden for the quiet atmosphere that facilitates conversation.
Teresa Wilborn, Pharm.D., Ph.D.
Q: What most excites you about your work?
Wilborn: I am most excited when the faculty in my department receive grant notifications and when we have discussions about potential paths forward for the department.
Q: What other areas are you leading right now?
Wilborn: I lead the pharmacology content creation and delivery for the medical school preclinical curriculum, and the department course development effort for graduate education.
Q: Tell me about a woman who inspired your career.
Wilborn: There were very few women science faculty when I was in high school and college, but my mother always inspired me to pursue my dreams. As a child of Syrian immigrants, she graduated from high school at 16 and left her small hometown to go to New York and study music at Juilliard. She had a tenacious spirit and zeal for life.
Q: What factors influenced you to choose a career in medicine/science?
Wilborn: I greatly admired the people in my family that had careers in medicine. In junior high school, I found solace in studying biology and knew I wanted to pursue a career in science.
Q: What advice would you give to your younger self or a mentee in the early career stage?
Wilborn: My advice to mentees would be to seek out good mentors and value their counsel. Surround yourself with people who inspire you and have a passion for what they do.