“The only way that we can break down these barriers, that we can decrease the stigma associated with infertility is to actually talk about it”

Dr. Ariela Marshall is an Associate Professor of Medicine & Hematology at Mayo Clinic, she joins us to discuss the issue of physician fertility. 1 out of 4 female physicians deals with fertility issues (1 out of 4!) yet this issue is barely discussed or worked on. Ariela co-authored an outstanding paper “Physician Fertility, A Call To Action”; we discuss the genesis of this work, the causes behind the issue and barriers to progress, as well as solid thoughts on moving forward.

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Key Learnings

1. The desire to draw awareness to the subject of physician fertility

2. Why Ariela and her co-authors shared their own histories of infertility in the article

3. How the article has helped people begin to talk about physician fertility

4. Why there is a culture of silence around physician infertility & the impact of societal stigma

5. Speculation around reasons for the increased occurrence of infertility amongst female physicians

6. What is the the low-hanging fruit to move the needle on this issue and provide the necessary infrastructure for support

7. Engaging with men around infertility

8. Inclusivity, social media, and building awareness through storytelling

9. The staggering difficulties and barriers women physicians face when trying to overcome infertility issues while still practicing medicine

10. The importance of leadership in changing the environment around physician infertility

11. Which journals rejected the article

Links

Twitter @AMarshallMD

“Physician Fertility: A Call To Action”

Arghavan Salles’ article in Time Magazine

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