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Women in Medicine conferences can be a powerful tool for women physicians to make connections and find resources, boosting their careers in myriad ways.

Medical conferences offer several benefits to physicians. According to cardiologist Yasmine S. Ali, MD, MSCI, FACC, FACP, conferences tailored toward women can help boost woman physicians’ careers in myriad ways. Some are held by medical specialty societies like the Association of Women Surgeons or the American College of Cardiology. With Women in Medicine conferences growing in number, Dr. Ali suggests that physicians seize these opportunities for gaining educational experiences, networking, and getting a career boost.

In order to get the most out of a Woman in Medicine conference, Dr. Ali emphasizes the importance of considering a conference’s focus, noting that conferences run the gamut of issues, including salary negotiations, paths toward leadership, work-life balance, women’s health, and academic growth. While medical specialty society conferences are specialty focused, others, like the Annual Meeting of the American Medical Women’s Association, cover a wide range of healthcare topics. Such events bring together woman physicians of all career stages and medical specialties from across the country, helping them to broaden their professional connections and discover new mentors. To find the best suited conference to attend, Dr. Ali suggests perusing the attendee list and networking opportunities.

For some physicians, it may be challenging to find the funds necessary to attend conferences, as attendance requires paying for everything from travel to lodging. Furthermore, going to a conference may also mean unpaid time off from work. Dr. Ali suggests that interested physicians research their financial support options, which might include institution-offered travel grants, paid time off, professional development funds, or reimbursement for going to a conference that relates to an employee’s job. Additional financial support options might be available via a physician’s university department, hospital network, or another institution with which the physician has a relationship. Dr. Ali also noted that some conference host societies offer scholarships that may support some or even all the costs to attend.

There may be times when, despite wanting to attend a conference, physicians simply cannot make it happen, and Dr. Ali urges physicians to bear in mind that it is okay. Physicians are more than their careers—they are human beings with personal lives that extend beyond the field of medicine. While physicians may want to attend a number of conferences, that may not be feasible given the missed workdays and family obligations that come into play. As such, Dr. Ali urges physicians to consider their personal commitments before investing the time and money into attending a conference, suggesting that they assess how the event fits in with their career timing, finances, and workload.

According to Dr. Ali, “every woman in medicine should attend a Women in Medicine conference or meeting at least once in her early-to-mid career.” Women in Medicine conferences provide priceless insight into topics like management, negotiations, how to get research funding, producing educational curricula, and how to traverse the topic of tenure. Attending will give woman physicians a new viewpoint on the medical field and might inform them on how to navigate their career-path trajectory.