Women Cardiologists

Summer 2022 Newsletter

We have several great updates we want to share with you.

NEW WIC REPRESENTATIVE FOR EASTERN PA

We bid a fond farewell to Monika Sanghavi, MD, FACC whose term as WIC Representative for Eastern PA has come to an end. Special thanks go to Monica for her leadership, especially as she adjusted and overcame the impact of COVID. Monica initiated our mentoring program, was able to add virtual programs, and was part of the team awarded an ACC BOG Grant. We are grateful for your service.

We excitedly welcome Sabrina Islam, MD, FACC, who takes up the WIC Representative position for Eastern PA. Sabrina earned her medical degree at SUNY Downstate Medical Center and her master of public health from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She moved to Philadelphia for Internal Medicine Residency and Cardiology fellowship at Drexel University and has enjoyed living here ever since. She is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University. Sabrina is passionate about preventive cardiology and cardiovascular health disparities in underserved communities. She is also an active member of the Structural heart team as an Interventional echocardiographer. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, Sabrina enjoys being involved in medical education and in mentoring. She founded the Women in Cardiology group at her institution in 2018 and hopes to expand her efforts in this role as the PaACC Eastern WIC Rep. 

MADNESS IN MARCH

Our walking contest in March had many of our WIC facing off against the Maryland ACC WIC members. And wow! – we walked a great deal. Reigning Champion Dierdre Donaghy walked 453,901 steps- that’s the equivalent of walking just over 8 marathons! Kayle Shapero who walked 442,048 steps (although were heard she ran most of them). A curious note: one winner only listed herself as ‘G’ undoubtedly for privacy concerns, so we will congratulate her here…great job G! Our top three winners received Amazon gift cards.

MENTORING

Our inaugural mentoring program was a success. Nine women signed up to be paired with a mentor from a different institution so they could ask questions about career trajectory, life balance, and get different perspectives. In a post-survey, both our mentors and mentees told us they felt the time spent was valuable. And we learned that mentees can teach mentors about things too!

MICROAGRESSIONS, BIAS & TOXICITY: NAVIGATING DIFFICULT INTERACTIONS IN CARDIOLOGY

The PA and NY Chapters received a grant to host a series of virtual sessions targeting education for women ten years out of training (although everyone is invited to join the important conversation). The third installment of the four-part series will take place on August 2 and is titled “Growing as a Leader & Overcoming Institutional Barriers.”  Members can join for one session or all of them. Click here to register.

As always, reach out (wic@pcacc.org) to us any time with ideas, suggestions or if you want to join the committee. 

Jess Huston, MD, FACC, Western PA WIC Representative

Sabrina Islam, MD, FACC,Eastern PA WIC Representative