08 March 2021
On International Women's Day, we asked some of our incredible allied health professional and trainee members to tell us what it's like being a woman in rheumatology, and what their career highlight is.
Kalveer Flora, lead rheumatology and biosimilars specialist pharmacist
Rheumatology is a pharmacist’s haven when it comes to pharmacological interventions with a plethora of life-changing drug treatments available. As an expert pharmacist, working in rheumatology means I am able to ensure patients have access to the right drug at the right time to ensure the best possible outcomes for them. I use my skills to ensure patients adhere to treatments all whilst delivering patient-centric care.
Providing high-quality care to patients is something which should be universal, regardless of gender. However, being a woman in a leadership position means my passion to achieve shines through and inspires other females to pursue and unlock their leadership potential.
It’s difficult to choose a specific career highlight, having been blessed with many great accomplishments to choose from. However, I would say leading a group of specialist rheumatology pharmacists across the UK stands out for me; becoming an international speaker spearheading the specialist rheumatology pharmacist role and representing pharmacy as a woman certainly stands out.
Georgina Ducker, nurse and recently elected member of the Clinical Affairs Committee
As a nurse I've always worked in areas heavily dominated by women. What I've noticed in my time in rheumatology is how each of us, as women, have different strengths and how we can all contribute and learn from each other. It's great to see women with positions of responsibility within the department and I feel very fortunate to work in a place where I am respected, and my skills are recognised.
Working in rheumatology allowed me to develop a career path, but at the same time it can also help with having a healthy work/life balance. This is the first role I've had that really makes it much easier to be a nurse, mum and wife.
My career highlight is definitely taking up my current position as a vasculitis/connective tissue disease specialist nurse. In the last 12 months I've had the most amazing encouragement and support from the people in my team and have been given the chance to really expand my knowledge and learn new skills, to constantly improve the service we deliver to our patients. This has been a very steep learning curve, but I'm fortunate to have good people around me.
Anastasia Madenidou, rheumatology specialty trainee, recently elected to the Trainees Committee as North West representative
It's a great pleasure to be a trainee within a specialty with no gender inequalities. I couldn't see myself following a different pathway. If you enjoy the diagnostic challenges, the multidisciplinary team, the patient/physician collaboration and would like to be a member of an inclusive community, do consider a career in rheumatology.
A career highlight for me? I'm delighted for my recent election as a member of the Trainees Committee. I'm grateful to all the members that supported and encouraged me to take this role. Having a leadership role within our community enables me to contribute further to our society.