Image: "Susie the Surgeon." Painted by Michiko Maruyama, MD, BDes Engineering and cardiac surgery resident at the U of A.
The Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry is proud of our women―talented, driven learners, researchers, clinicians, educators, staff members and mentors―all contributing to save and improve people's lives.
Women have been historically underrepresented in health research. In partnership with our community, we are making strides to close those gaps. Our Women and Children's Health Research Institute is leading the charge on women's health as the only research institute in Canada to focus on both women's and children's health, including perinatal health.
Recently, we celebrated the opening of the new Lois Hole Hospital for Women research centre with our partners at Alberta Health Services and the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation. The new research centre will help scientists and clinicians work more closely together on health solutions for female patients.
But there's more work to be done. Gender equity is a collective mission to pursue, and it is our responsibility in the health sciences to support and celebrate the achievements of women, while advocating for change and action. In our Faculty, the majority of associate and assistant deans are women; not because of their gender, but because they are leaders, and when given an equal opportunity, they proved to be the best persons for the positions.
Balance is the theme for this year's International Women's Day and it points to how we all have a part to play to accelerate gender-balance for our communities to thrive. A gender-balanced world is a healthier world.
I encourage all of you to think about how you can balance for better and take action within your areas of work to achieve it.
Dennis Kunimoto, MD, FRCPC
Interim Dean, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry