Women cardiologists, how are you balancing work/life?

[Eyeaboutthat]

Female interested in cardiology but discouraged by people suggesting this field is not compatible with a balanced life. Any women in the field who can share their experiences as it pertains to having/raising children as a young attending or fellow? I realize the practice structure and noninvasive vs invasive has a lot to do with weekly work hours, but looking for insight about how women in the field have managed to stay true to their passion while also having a happy family life.

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[wamcp]

Do you assume men don’t care about raising children or having a family life...maybe your question is only relevant specifically to women in regards to physically having a child/being pregnant...

 

[Eyeaboutthat]

open to comments on lifestyle and family balance from both genders, but there's a reason only 20% of women go into the specialty

 

[aspiringcardiologa]

open to comments on lifestyle and family balance from both genders, but there's a reason only 20% of women go into the specialty

Interested in this as well.

The percentage is 13% of practicing cardiologists in the US (14% in Australia and in the UK) (https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.118.037835)

 

[cardsguy2017]

In honesty I'm not sure why that number is low. I can make some guesses, but the lifestyle is what you make of it. While interventional can be tougher, as another thread discusses, gen cards and even EP doesn't have to be that bad. Really depends on the practice setup. No different than many other specialties. But the idea of work-life balance for women operates under the assumption that men aren't involved parents or it follows traditional norms that women must be primary caregivers. That isn't always the case nor does it have to be. OB is majority women physicians and I'd argue that's an even worse lifestyle than cardiology.

 

[timpview]

If my sister/daughter had similar concerns this is how I would phrase it..

what constitutes FT (full time) status??
It’s funny to me how FT in ER is 12 shifts/month yet if I calculated my “shifts” I would be at 25-32 some months.. or how a hospitalist is 14/month and outpt IM is 20-24z

Or how admin frames it as “weeks off” vs “shifts/mo) depending on the specialty..

So my take is flexibility trumps nearly everything else in family life. Others would view this differently. So what jobs can I have flexibility either having the autonomy to chose when I start/stop work (to be able to take kids to school etc) or to make sure I’m not missing their key events. In today’s world of zero physician autonomy than to me it’s just how much do you have to work. Imo that’s where number of days worked factors in- plus those shift based specialties often can be pretty flexible in the amount you want to work.. not something as easy in call heavy specialties.
To your question in re:to cardiology as others mentioned it depends on the set up.

do general cardiology at a large non private practice group which is salaried with few production incentives (academic or hospital employed) and you can be home by 5, have rare night call (2-3 times a month) and 6-12 weeks off. So that exists. But it might not be super flexible (can’t cancel clinic next week to attend your kids Game)

 

[Sapien3]

I am a female cardiology fellow who started training in July 2019. I am not sure how many of the posts above are from one of those 13% female cardiologists. I may not be the best person to answer this Q, but I will give a try.

4 (25%) out of 20 cardiology attendings at my training institute (community hospital) are female cardiologists. Which is quite a high number given the AHA statistics. 2 of them joined within the last 3-4 years. I believe more and more female cardiologists are joining the practice. All are Gen cardiologists ( 2 do diagnostic caths and very good at it). I will try to answer this question based on my(rather short) experience as a fellow and having closely worked with them all.


Fellowship

Cons:
Cardiology training is definitely busier and stressful than my residency. I get less time during weekdays to spend with family when on core rotation (cath, CCU, echo & consult months). During weekend calls I barely see them. I have 6-weekend calls as PGY4 (Friday evening till Monday morning) and I carry on with my regular rotation on Monday. That means I work 12 days straight 6 times a year. Radiation exposure during cath months- so, one needs to plan pregnancy such that before pregnancy and 1st trimester they avoid radiation.

Pros:
I love cardiology. So, though it is busy and at times stressful, I am happier. I have more weekends than before which is great. I have supportive co-fellows who cover when I need to be somewhere unlike in residency, we have better flexibility in rearranging shifts and rotations. Especially PGY 5 and PGY6 there are more elective months and most of the female fellows plan on being pregnant during these years.


Working as a female cardiologist: What I notice is definitely female cardiologists are busier than hospitalists/other specialists. Again it depends on the clinical setting one works in and RVUs one wants to make We have 2 non-invasive cardiologists in 50s who see about 20+ pts in the clinic, read tons of echo and nucs, and come in on weekends to catch up on work. They have the busiest practice compared to some male cardiologists. I see those who just start practice and who have grown up children slog it to build the practice and bring RVU. In around pregnancy, I see definitely female cardiologists taking time off and cutting clinic hours way higher compared to men having child-this is the truth. One of my male cardiology attending only took a half-day off on the day his wife who is a GP had a baby

BIG FACTOR outside work - definitely having a supportive partner and family helps. Being married to a non-physician partner it is way easier to manage housework and plan dates. However, sometimes it could be frustrating for him/her that you may not be able to join them on business trips as often. If your partner is a physician with a busy practice it could be challenging, but then they may have a little better understanding of your work requirement.

Ultimately, the work-life balance as a female cardiologist is up to oneself to manage. It depends on how flexible your practice setting is, how supportive your partner/family/co-workers/admin is and how you busy you want it to be.

Avoid comparing your life with other specialties and non-physicians. Grass on the other side looks greener and each has their own perks

The pros and cons I mentioned are largely applicable to bothe genders I think. Apart from planning around pregnancy, and busy cardiology work-life, female cardiologists face similar issues that any other working females face in other working areas.

Thanks for reading! I hope this long post answered your Q partly at least.

 

[timpview]

“Ultimately, the work-life balance as a female cardiologist is up to oneself to manage. It depends on how flexible your practice setting is, how supportive your partner/family/co-workers/admin is and how you busy you want it to be.”

Yeah unfortunately in the real world it’s usually not up to oneself.

Sure, everyone would love a great job of work balance. But it doesn’t matter how “supportive your partners are” they’re not just going to work extra so you can be home with your kids.

And the notion that “admin” will be supportive in your goals is just laughable.

you basically have three work options in the real world..

1. old school private practice. Dying field. U have the most flexibility here but you’re still responsible for your overhead and Call. It’s typically the worse life balance because you’re directly responsible in keeping the lights on

2. Hospital Employed- You’re plugged into the slot and how much flexibility you get from there is usually outside your control.

again u can find some good jobs here but you’re not going to likely be able to just dictate your terms to your liking. It’s a take it or leave it.

3. academic- this is where I’ve see a couple part timers. Usually they’re making <200k but again you aren’t likely to have a ton of flexibility

there’s a reason why few women choose cardiology- ivory tower types just don’t understand the realities of what the current work environment is for 95% of us. Women are smart enough to realize that no matter how many “mentor programs” and special sessions re: the topic are held at ACC the realities of what their future jobs will be like won’t change.

the only solution (if there is one) is to for “leadership” (whatever that means) to advocate for certain work conditions for cardiologist in general. Otherwise it’s somewhat rare to be able to dictate your terms in the job market- and whatever concessions u do get will come at a hefty price cut.. so my take is to target the truly flexible specialties or have eyes wide open that your future job likely will suck.

 

[Sapien3]

Sure, everyone would love a great job of work balance. But it doesn’t matter how “supportive your partners are” they’re not just going to work extra so you can be home with your kids.

I think having a busy work life as a cardiologist, a partner who can share housework, and taking care of kids equally if not more would be a great help. No one would question the wife of a cardiologist being a full-time mom, but sure people would look down upon a husband being a full-time dad. Unfortunately, gender roles are solidly ingrained in our modern minds. Not to digress from the actual challenges of being a female cardiologist, I do believe any demanding job needs good spousal/family support.

there’s a reason why few women choose cardiology- ivory tower types

Interesting. I had to google "ivory tower type" which means "someone as living in an ivory tower, you mean that they have no knowledge or experience of the practical problems of everyday life". Well, I beg to differ that this definition holds good only for women who choose to do cardiology. I bet men who get into cardiology can also be similar type- or probably they did crash coarse as cardiology before going into med school. Just kidding People weigh their options before going into any specialty in this day and age. There is ample data out there to make a an informed decision. I believe the challenges faced by both female and male cardiologists are similar. I think the priorities of any female worker in any field change with their changing role during motherhood. I don't disagree that for a female cardiologist that such adjustments will come with "a heavy price". I am not sure how this can be addressed. or, you just deal with it?

the only solution (if there is one) is to for “leadership” (whatever that means) to advocate for certain work conditions for a cardiologist in general

100% agree.

 

[timpview]

- was referring to work partners. Not spouse. Work partners don’t care about your quality of life. Hopefully your spouse does

- “ivory tower types” wasn’t referencing women, but rather the academics who have been chatting about Increasing the number of women in cardiology without addressing the real reason(s) women don’t go into cardiology

 

[Sapien3]

Got it. Thank you for clarifying! Yup. I do understand that co-workers would not take extra work. Leadership level interventions can only make cardiology work-life balance better.