UH medical school ranks high for women in faculty and leadership

Some of the women in the MD Class of 2019.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa's John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) is a national leader among medical colleges for the number of women faculty at the school.

According to the latest data from the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC), 46% of faculty at JABSOM are women, placing JABSOM eighth among the 129 U.S. medical schools for its percentage of women faculty. Leading the list were the University of Puerto Rico and the University of Colorado (where 52% of faculty are women), George Washington University and Baylor University (51% ), Morehouse University (50%), Florida State University and the University of Oregon (48%), the University of New Mexico, University of North Dakota and the University of Missouri at Kansas City (47%), Boston University (46%, a tie with JABSOM) and Northwestern University (45%).

“In addition to our high percentage of women faculty at JABSOM, we have in recent years ranked high in women in leadership positions, including percentage of female department chairs,” said Professor Marla Berry, PhD, Chair of the JABSOM Department of Cell and Molecular Biology.

Other women in leadership at JABSOM include:

• Dr. Elizabeth Tam, Chair of Medicine
• Dr. Rosanne Harrigan, Chair of Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Dr. Kamal Masaki, Chair of Geriatric Medicine
• Dr. Patricia Blanchette, Interim Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
• Dr. Naleen Andrade, Designated Institutional Official (DIO) for Graduate Medical Education
• Dr. Lee Buenconsejo-Lum, Deputy DIO and DIO Designee
• Dr. Mariana Gerschenson, PhD, Director of Research and Graduate Education
• Dr. Cecilia Shikuma, Director of the Hawaiʻi Center for AIDS
• Dr. Winona Lee, Director of the ʻImi Hoʻola Post-Bacalaureate Program
• Dr. Ivy Nip-Asano, Director of Admissions
• Nancy Foster, Chief Financial Officer
• Coco Seymour, Chief Administrative Officer
• Tina Shelton, Director of Communications, Media and Government Affairs
• Kathleen Connelly, Director, Institutional Planning and Special Projects
• Rory Kaneshiro, Director, Risk and Clinical Affairs

“As an institution, JABSOM is dedicated to diversity within its medical students, faculty and staff. This commitment to diversity is evident in our most recent rankings, illustrating the support and opportunities available to women who aspire to achieve successful careers in academic medicine,” said Dr. Winona K. Lee, MD, American Association for Medical Colleges Diversity Officer and Director, ʻImi Hoʻōla Post-Baccalaureate Program.

“JABSOM strives continuously to be supportive and inclusive of our students, faculty and staff, and that approach provides all with the opportunity to develop and advance their careers,” said Virginia S. Hinshaw, PhD, Chancellor Emeritus and JABSOM Professor of Tropical Medicine, Medical Microbiology and Pharmacology. “Having a diverse leadership team enables us to consider different perspectives and, in our view, make better decisions for all members. We also recognize that, although the ʻplaying fieldʻ is improved for women, it is still not level (equal), so we do pay attention to that aspect for all underrepresented groups. What a joy to work where both women and men are respected as accomplished colleagues – that 'new normal' will have a positive impact on the next generation.”

One area where most medical schools could still make strides is in the percentage of tenured faculty who are women. At JABSOM, 17% of women faculty were tenured, compared with 36% of male faculty. Puerto Rico led medical schools in that category, with 50% of its women faculty tenured, versus 56% of men.  Creigton University's medical school came came in second place, with 40% of its women faculty tenured, while 55% of male faculty had tenure. The AAMC data was collected in 2014.

For more information, visit: http://jabsom.hawaii.edu/uh-first-in-women-in-medicine/