Why do women physicians choose a career in academic medicine?

I found an interesting article in Academic Medicine, the official, peer-reviewed journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges. The article was titled, "Women physicians: choosing a career in academic medicine."

My wife is a woman physician. She works in private practice, but she strongly considered a career in academic medicine.

Why do women choose a career in academic medicine? Here's what the researchers at Boonshoft School of Medicine, Wright State University found:

For many women, choosing academic medicine was not necessarily an active, planned decision; rather, it was serendipitous or circumstantial.

BioCareers Webinar: Highlighting Transferable Skills from Academia to Industry

BioCareers Webinar: Highlighting Transferable Skills from Academia to Industry, hosted by Lauren Celano on June 22nd at 1pm EST.

On June 22nd from 1-2pm EST, Lauren Celano will host a webinar through BioCareers to discuss the importance of highlighting transferable skills for individuals who have strong technical backgrounds looking to move into industry or within industry from scientific to business focused roles. Lauren will provide guidance on how to recognize transferable skills, how to highlight them and which of these skills are valuable within different roles within the life sciences sector.

How to break out of academic medicine to enter industry

Let’s face it: academic physicians often face burnout and many of them get called from recruiters about non-clinical opportunities in pharmaceutical research, biotechnology drug development, etc. How does an academic physician break out of the world of academic medicine? Is it as simple as applying for a pharmaceutical job online? Do you simply trust what you hear from an executive recruiter?

The entire process of breaking out of academic medicine and transitioning into industry can be quite complex if you’re trying to negotiate the optimal package that makes the most sense for you to leave academia. How strong are your corporate leadership skills? What is your value proposition? How do you negotiate your salary? Who else is applying for the position? Are you truly a competitive job candidate given the fact that many other seasoned physician executives may have many more years of industry experience?

Physician Careers: Academic Medical Centers - Dr. Peter Slavin (MD/MBA 8th AMMP Conference)

Here's a video of a presentation given by Dr. Peter Slavin at the 8th Annual AMMP conference titled, "Physician Careers: Academic Medical Centers." I blogged about his presentation (here) back in April when I was in Boston attending the Association of MD/MBA Programs (AMMP) 8th Annual Conference.

Now, you can view a video of his presentation and slides here (you'll need Microsoft Silverlight to play the video).

Science Shaping Our World (SHOW) – The Role of Academics in Drug Discovery: Filling the Gap

Thursday November 11, 6:00-9:30pm
Science Shaping our World - The Role of Academics in Drug Discovery: Filling the Gap
Event Organizer: Munevar and Associates
Location: Microsoft NERD, 1 Memorial Drive, Cambridge, MA 02142
Time: 6:00-9:30pm

For more information: http://shownovember2010.eventbrite.com

Science Shaping Our World (SHOW) is an ongoing seminar and networking series that highlights areas of life science research possessing significant application potential. Our mission is to bring together researchers, clinicians, entrepreneurs, investors, technology and business professionals, in a setting where they can gain exposure and insight into the life science advancements changing our world. Further, we seek to promote active inter and cross-disciplinary networking toward fostering the creation of opportunities in Life Science.

Transitioning from academia to industry

There's a nice blog post on the Propel Careers blog on the topic of transitioning from academia to industry. We probably all know of academic physicians who made the career move to enter the pharma or biotech industry. Although they may face criticism from some of their colleagues for going to the "dark side," there are a number of reasons why physicians may choose to transition from academia to industry.

The blog post is titled, "Propel's Industry Insights - transitioning from academia to industry – Kevin Sprott." Kevin does a nice job outlining some of the myths and facts associated with such a transition. You can read the blog post here. (by Kevin Sprott, Business Advisor, Propel Careers)

Utah's Right to Know Salary Info for Docs

Salary can be a touchy subject. People don't like to talk about it. Maybe they're embarrassed. Are you embarrassed about your salary? How would you feel if it were posted on a public website? Do people have the right to know your salary? What if part of your salary is paid by taxpayer dollars?

The state of Utah has a website that lists salaries of individuals who receive some of their income through taxpayer money. Sounds interesting, doesn't it? This includes physicians and other academic clinicians who are employed through a university hospital.

Supposedly, the largest database of salaries was last obtained and updated last March and reflects actual earnings for 2007. Curious? Take a look here: http://www.utahsright.com/salaries.php?city=u_of_u

NY Times: Harvard Medical School and Ethics

There's a very interesting story on the NY Times about Harvard medical school and ethics as it relates to relationships with industry. We're primarily talking about the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, but we must also remember medical device and diagnostic equipment companies. In any case, Harvard professors are deeply involved in industry-funded research and many of them are also paid speakers and consultants for several of these companies. Conflict of interest is the key buzzword (or in this case, buzzphrase). How do you resolve any potential conflicts of interest in such situations? It can get quite complicated, especially if you have significant ties to industry. However, I believe that it can be done, but that's not to say that everyone out there is doing it correctly.

There have been many stories of highly-ranked academic professors quitting their academic careers to work for industry. I think people need to find what's right for them, and for some, a career in non-clinical medicine is the right fit. I personally know several people who have transitioned from academia to pharma and most of them seem to enjoy the different challenges and rewards faced in a corporate environment. Of course, there are pros and cons to every decision, including the decision about leaving academia. The bottom line is that it's a very personal decision.