Members of the American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) Board of Directors convened in Washington, DC, March 9-10 for the 2023 Interim Meeting. With enthusiasm, they came together to focus on more opportunities for Connection, Collaboration, and Clarity for our members. Before the Interim meeting, AMWA met with directors from the White House Gender Policy Council and as well as legislative aids for Senators Booker, Padilla, and Feinstein to share healthcare priorities.
Key Areas of Focus for the Next 6 Months
AMWA Executive Board (L-R) Khawaja Shams, Dr. Paulette Cazares, Dr. Elizabeth Garner, Dr. Susan Hingle, Dr. Theresa Rohr-Kirchgraber
One of our top priorities in the months ahead is Workforce Equity for women in medicine. “As the only multi-specialty organization of women physicians, we are well positioned to leverage our voice to advance women’s health research and support workforce challenges,” says Elizabeth Garner, MD, MPH, AMWA President. The board was energized by recent visits to the White House.
By determining the specific needs and challenges facing women physicians, AMWA aims to identify and address the reasons behind the workforce shortage. We see this as a golden opportunity to identify blindspots and seek opportunities to assure that more women physicians are rising to the highest positions of leadership. AMWA commits to change the culture of medicine and to promote leadership equity across all sectors in healthcare.
AMWA reaffirmed a commitment to restore and protect access to reproductive healthcare, especially to counter the impact of abortion bans on medical practice.
“AMWA remains steadfast in advocating for physicians to deliver the full spectrum of evidence-based reproductive care for each patient,” says Theresa Rohr-Kirchgraber, MD, AMWA Past-President. “Healthcare decisions should remain between patient and doctor without legislative or judicial interference” AMWA will continue our advocacy as a co-founder of the Reproductive Health Coalition with Doctors for America.
Other areas of discussion included the importance of communication, use and impact of AI in healthcare, promoting patient-centered care across women’s health, and seeking opportunities for advocacy. Any member interested in getting more involved in advocacy outreach is encouraged to join these efforts.
2024-2025 AMWA Board to Expand
The Board unanimously agreed to add three additional positions to bring in more perspectives and greater energy. “Given the depth and diversity of the candidates who applied, we recommend expanding the board to 6 at-large members,” says Susan Hingle, MD, chair of the Governance Committee and AMWA President-Elect. The Governance Committee was impressed by the large number of high-quality applicants, which promises to enrich and elevate the organization’s leadership pipeline.
The AMWA 2023 elections have been announced by email. We urge all voting members to look for the emailed ballot and vote, so that our next board has the broadest support.
Announcing the 109th Annual Meeting
The 2024 Annual Meeting theme is Securing Your Future in the Changing Landscape of Medicine. Topics will include the future of management in healthcare, contract, negotiation, and legal workshops, a sex and gender medicine panel, and a fireside chat on wellness. The AMWA board elected to host the 109th meeting virtually to assure these important topics are accessible to our full membership. Save the dates: March 22-24, 2024. The call for posters, workshops and clinical hot topic presentations is open now.
