The Duke and UNC Chapters of the Association of Women Surgeons held the inaugural Southeast Exchange Conference on September 22, 2018, at the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. The keynote address was delivered by Dr. Melinda Kibbe, Chair of UNC Department of Surgery. Eighty attendees at various levels of training attended the conference from at least four different institutions across the Southeast region, including Duke, UNC, Wake Forest, and Vanderbilt. This year, workshops focused on gender bias issues and contract negotiation were among the most popular.
Duke had a strong showing at the conference. Notably, five attendings participated as panelists from various specialties, including Drs. Linda Cendales, Georgia Beasley, Lola Fayanju, Eileen Raynor, Elisabeth Tracy, and Brittany Zwischenberger. Residents and fellows served on the panel as well, including Drs. Monique Vaughn (Gyn Fellow), Kate Krucoff (Plastics, PGY-6), Ashley Johnston (Urology, PGY-4), and Kelly Murphy (Neurosurgery, PGY-2).
Thank you to the steering committee, which consisted of 11 medical students from Duke (D) and UNC: Jihane Jadi, Ashley Choi (D), Janine Baldino, Hannah Martin (D), Jacquelyn Dillon (D), Bryanna Stukes (D), Kristen Rhodin (D), Hanna Kemeny (D), Kelli Klinc, Rebecca Vernon (D), Neelima Panth (D), and Danielle Davari.
