2021 Inaugural Walter Wright Lecture
Deeply honoured to have been invited back to the University of Toronto in December last year to give my very first keynote lecture - the 2021 Walter Wright Lecture entitled "In Gendered Lenses We Trust: The Quest For Clarity."
This is the second iteration of my thoughts in this area which takes a much deeper dive into the evidence around the lived experience of unconscious gender bias - specific to the fields of Medicine and Ophthalmology.
For the new listener, put simply, it explores the way both genders inadvertently contribute to implicit gender bias – the lenses in which we view medical and ophthalmologist women.
For the returned learner, building on some of my previous reflections in this area, it also shifts away the focus on women being expected to solely fix the system on their own, as this burden may only be lifted through the shared empowerment of men and women tackling their unconscious bias.
Importantly, it addresses the very real need for female and male “Champions of Change” –highlighting examples of those, male and female, who have already begun to take up this mantle, demonstrating it through their leadership.
Thank you to those who lent their support “behind the scenes” - and permission to share their significant actions, however seemingly incremental; it is through these small actions that we simultaneously invite all individuals to become more empowered to listen, understand, and change. You were key opinion leaders, residency program directors, fellowship supervisors, heads of departments, and much much more in these gatekeeping roles.
Unfortunately derailed by Omicron Variant just hours before flight departure, it had to be delivered by electronic means... but I am grateful to have received a recording of it and hope to share it with you today. Again, I am so deeply appreciative of the opportunity to learn and share in this space.
I would love to know how this resonates out there with other women and men in medicine and elsewhere, and to hear about your experiences too. Please feel free to DM me and I’d love to listen and learn.
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