Category: Women in Critical CareLeading the Future of Critical Care: Unlocking Women's Potential in Leadership Volume 36 | Issue 3 | Sept 2025 Critical care medicine is one of the most complex and rewarding areas in healthcare. It is a specialty that thrives on decisive action, strategic thinking, and the ability to lead diverse teams under intense pressure. In this high-stakes environment, leadership is not simply a title—it is a commitment to advancing patient care, research, and education. Women physicians have been steadily increasing their presence in critical care, both in training programs and clinical practice. Yet, leadership opportunities in this field remain an area of tremendous potential. The question is no longer whether women can lead in critical care—it is how we can best equip and support them to do so. Continue Reading... Women in Critical Care Feature: Understanding and Overcoming Imposter Phenomenon Volume 36 | Issue 1 | March 2025 Imposter phenomenon (IP) was first described by Drs. Clance and Imes in 1978 in highly successful women who have an “inability to internalize [their] accomplishments” despite evidence to the contrary. Instead, they hold tight to the notion their “successes are fraudulent” and “are convinced that they have fooled anyone who thinks otherwise.” (1) Imposter phenomenon (also known as imposter syndrome) is an established entity seen in both men and women and is not uncommon in medicine. In fact, IP is more prevalent among physicians than the general population with a prevalence of 22-60% in medical students and 33-44% in residents. (2) Further, A European survey from 2024 explored IP in Anesthesiology and found high rates of IP in physicians identifying as female and physicians with fewer years of practice. (2) Continue Reading... Women in Critical Care (WICC) Update Volume 35 | Issue 4 | Dec 2024 We’re excited to introduce the new leadership team for the Women in Critical Care (WICC) group! First, we extend our heartfelt thanks to Drs. Siddiqui and Hua for their dedication in establishing and leading WICC. As we take up the mantle, we are eager to continue building on their efforts. Continue Reading... Women in Critical Care - Member Spotlights Volume 35 | Issue 3 | Sept 2024 The WICC Member Spotlight highlights our members’ day-to-day work lives. How do our members “do it all”? Balance their busy work life with their interests outside of work. These profiles highlight that although practicing as an Anesthesiology Critical Care attending may seem daunting as a trainee, it is a challenging yet fulfilling specialty. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care Update Volume 35 | Issue 2 | June 2024 In keeping with our mission of offering mentorship and an opportunity to build a community, WICC presented a new format on March 28th, the Fireside Consultancy. This Fireside Consultancy was led by Dr. Hua, Co-Chair of WICC where 4 WICC participants presented focused issues that they were facing. Continue Reading… Fireside Consultancy by Women in Critical Care Volume 35 | Issue 1 | March 2024 Need answers to pressing questions in clinical practice, career advancement, research, work-life balance, or academic journey? Explore the WICC’s peer mentorship model – the consultancy – which may help in answering these queries. Starting on March 28, WICC will present a quarterly one-hour Fireside Consultancy style hour. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care: Year in Review Volume 34 | Issue 4 | Dec 2023 SOCCA WICC ended the year with a Fireside chat featuring three Intensivists in different phases of their career to share their unique journeys in academia, professional life, and career challenges. Drs. Sheela Pai Cole, Brigid Flynn, and Emily Vail joined Drs. Tabaie and Siddiqui to host the fourth and final Fireside Chat for WICC in November. Dr. Tabaie moderated the panel and asked varied questions of the speakers about mentorship, balancing academic focus and clinical demands, strategies for saying ‘no’ to opportunities when stretched, and pulling back and re-engaging with an academic career due to family obligations. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care Steering Committee Welcomes New Members Volume 34 | Issue 3 | Sept 2023 Dr. Teresa Mulaikal, MD, FASE, is a cardiothoracic and critical care anesthesiologist, practicing at Columbia University in New York. Tess Russell, MD, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, is a Texas transplant to New York City. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care: One-Year Anniversary Volume 34 | Issue 2 | June 2023 With the Women in Critical Care (WICC) section’s one-year anniversary, we presented several initiatives accomplished in the past year at the SOCCA 2023 annual business meeting. We have shared several Interchange articles, Fireside chats, and two webinars that have been well received—one on Wellness and a recent webinar on strategies to enhance women applicants in CCM. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care Update Volume 34 | Issue 1 | March 2023 February 3rd marks Elizabeth Blackwell’s birthday. Dr. Blackwell (3 February 1821 – 31 May 1910) was a British physician, notable as the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the UK. In addition to being an academic infectious disease specialist, she was an advocate for social justice and equity for women. She founded the New York Infirmary for Women and Children in 1857 along with her sister Emily, and she played a significant role in the American Civil War by organizing nurses and educating women and girls. It is important when looking at history to include the contributions of Black women physicians who have equally contributed in the struggle to achieve the successes of today. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care Volume 33 | Issue 4 | Dec 2022 We hope you are well and have seen the new uploads on our Women in Critical Care website (SOCCA) and our column in the SOCCA Interchange. We are adding more content and intend to bring new Webinars, Fireside Chats, and—hopefully—some more creative content designed for the busy woman in CCM. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care: Suggestions to Organizations/Societies for Female Representation in Critical Care Volume 33 | Issue 4 | Dec 2022 Background: Despite the increasing percentage of female intensivists and their multifaceted involvement in healthcare over the last decades, to date, their representation in physician workforce, academic positions and leadership roles in critical care remains disproportionately low. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care: Where We Are & Where We Want to Be Over the past decade, the need to promote gender diversity in medicine has been embraced by several medical societies. In the USA in 2017, 33% of critical care trainees and 26% of ICU physicians were women. There are many reasons for this disparity and work is being done to understand these reasons to some extent. It was noted in literature that an explicit focus on “eliminating gender inequity will help to gradually change societal views of the roles played by women and men critical care physicians so that it will become the norm for women and men to be both critical care physicians and leaders in critical care.” Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care Update Volume 33 | Issue 2 | June 2022 Women in Critical Care’s Mission Statement and Vision: Mission: To provide a community of mentorship, sponsorship and support that promotes the recruitment, development, advancement, and well-being of women in Critical Care Anesthesiology. Vision: To foster women leaders in Critical Care Anesthesiology. Continue Reading… Women in Critical Care: May Hua, MD, MS, WICC Co-Chair Volume 33 | Issue 2 | June 2022 How long have you been a SOCCA Member? What is your favorite part of SOCCA? Women in Critical Care Update Volume 33 | Issue 1 | March 2022 We had our first ‘kick off’ meeting for Women in Critical Care. We had 59 pre-registrants and 17 participants for the first zoom meeting on February 23. Our objective was to introduce the mission as well as to decide a structure and goals for the year. We discussed a website launch as well as a first, official meeting on March 17 at the 2022 SOCCA Virtual Annual Meeting where we will have an invited guest speaker: Dr. Deborah Cook (a truly inspiring woman intensivist). Continue Reading… |