Celebrating Women in Medicine Month 2024

The IARS gratefully recognizes and celebrates the women of anesthesia. The women highlighted here represent just a few of the many remarkable women with whom we are fortunate to collaborate. They guide and enrich our educational programs, research efforts and provide mentorship to those who follow. IARS is proud to encourage and support women in medicine.

Laurette McMechan, assistant editor of Anesthesia & Analgesia, was known affectionately as the “Mother of Anesthestists.” Along with her husband, IARS founder Dr. Francis McMechan, she played a crucial role in the organization of anesthesiology as a specialty. From the organization’s founding until her death in 1964, Laurette remained dedicated to the IARS mission and to the anesthesiology specialty as a whole.

Immediate Past Chair
Beverley A. Orser, MD, PhD, FRCPC, FRSC

Vice Chair
Vivianne Tawfik, MD, PhD

Trustee
Meredith Adams, MD, MS, FASA, FAMIA

Adena Dutton, MD – no photo
Judith Donegan, MD, PhD – no photo
Joy Hawkins, MD
Patricia Kapur, MD
Colleen Koch, MD, MS, MBA, FACC
Laura Niklason, PhD, MD
Debra Schwinn, MD
Eleanor Seymour, MD – no photo
Denise Wedel, MD

Angela Enright, OC, MB BCh, FRCPC
Executive Editor and Section Editor – Global Health

Nathalia Jimenez, MD, MPH
Executive Editor

Amanda M Kleiman, MD
Executive Editor

Lisbeth Evered, BS, MBiostat, PhD
Section Editor – Geriatric Anesthesia

​​​Jill M. Mhyre, MD
Section Editor – Obstetric Anesthesiology

Christina Pabelick, MD
Section Editor – Basic Science

Carole Torsney, PhD, FHEA
Section Editor – Pain and Analgesic Mechanisms

​​​​Jennifer Weller, MD, MClinEd, MBBS, FANZCA, FRCA
Section Editor – Patient Safety

​​​Jarna Shah, MD
Social Media Editor

​​​​​Emily E. Sharpe, MD
Social Media Editor

BobbieJean Sweitzer, MD, FACP
Executive Editor

Christina L. Jeng, MD, FASA
Associate Editor

Joanna Kountanis, MD
Assistant Editor

Cardiac Anesthesia
Emily Methangkool, MD, MPH

Critical Care Medicine
Youn-Hoa Jung, MD

Multimedia
Carole Lin, MD

Neuroanesthesia
Elizabeth Mahanna Gabrielli, MD

Obstetric Anesthesia
Jaime Daly, MD

Pain Medicine
Shalini Shah, MD, MBA

Pediatric Anesthesia
Aditee Ambardekar, MD, MSEd

Social Media
Kanupriya Kumar, MD

Summaries
Kristine E. W. Breyer, MD

Cardiac Anesthesia
Seema Deshpande, MBBS

Cardiac Anesthesia
Ellen Richter, MD, FASE

Global Health Equity
Betelehem Asnake, MD

Global Health Equity
Elizabeth Igaga, MBChB, MMed, FCA (ECSA)

Liaison to Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation
Elizabeth Malinzak, MD

Liaison to Society for Technology in Anesthesia
Julia A. Gálvez, MD, MBI

Neuroanesthesia
Diana Ayubcha, DO, MS

Pain Medicine
Deepa Kattail, MD, MHS, FAAP

Pediatric Anesthesia
Elisha Peterson, MD, Med, FAAP, FASA

Pediatric Anesthesia
Jamie Rubin, MD

Pediatric Anesthesia
Jina Sinskey, MD

Pediatric Anesthesia
Katherine Zaleski, MD

Pediatric Spanish Education
Vera Winograd Gómez, MD

Point-of-Care Ultrasound
Ying Hui Low, MD

Regional Anesthesia
Emily Lin, MD, MS

Julie K. Freed, MD, PhD, FAHA, FCVS – Chair
Kristin Schreiber, MD, PhD
Christa Nehs, PhD
Elizabeth Whitlock, MD, MSc
Kimberly Howard-Quijano, MD, MS, FASE
Jennifer Rabbitts, MD, Ch.B
Angela Jerath, MSc, FRCPC, FANZCA, MD, BSc
Miriam Treggiari, MD
Monica Vavilala, MD
Lisa Qia Rong, MD

Meredith Adams, MD, MS, FASA, FAMIA
IARS Trustee

Allison Dalton, MD
Society of Critical Care Anesthesiologists (SOCCA) Representative

Xueqin Ding, MD, PhD
International Subcommittee Representative

Yasuko Nagasaka, MD, PhD
The Japan Society for Clinical Anesthesia (JSCA) Representative

Kendall Smith, MD, PhD
Early-Stage Anesthesiology Scholars (eSAS) Representative

Vivianne Tawfik, MD, PhD
IARS Vice Chair

Co-Chair, Membership Committee
Vivianne Tawfik, MD, PhD

IARS Trustee and Membership Committee Member
Meredith Adams, MD, MS, FASA, FAMIA

Co-Chair, Outreach, Retention and Engagement Subcommittee
Elizabeth Whitlock, MD, MSc

Iamze Agdgomelashvili, MD, PhD
Xueqin Ding, MD, PhD, FASA
Mada Helou, MD
Marina Moguilevitch, MD
Kristin L. Schreiber, MD, PhD
Shagun Bhatia Shah, MBBS, DA, DNB, FIMSA, MNAMS, Cert. TEE
Coridalia Wald, MD

Jill F. Arthur, MD, FAAP
Sharon Ashley, MD, MPH, MBA, DABA, FASA
Ofeoritse Murphy-Akpieyi, MBBS
Kathleen Gage Parr, MD, FASA
Juhi Saxena
Jarna Shah, MD
Shalini Shah, MD

Co-Chair
Elizabeth Whitlock, MD, MSc

Members
Yvette N. Martin McGrew, MD, PhD
Adamina G. Podraza, MD, FASA, FAAP
Kimberly Rengel, MD
Katie Schenning, MD, MPH, MCR
Abigail Smith, MD
Jessica Spence, MD, PhD, FRCPC

Abirami Kumaresan, MD
Mara Serbanescu, MD
Natalie Silverton, MD
Theresa Lii, MD, MS

Archana Bharadwaj, MD, MPH, CHES
Young May Cha, MD, MS

Anoushka Afonso, MD
Sarah Alber, MD
Xiaowen Bai, PhD
Christina S. Boncyk, MD
Varina Clark Onwunyi, MD
Allison Dalton, MD
Xueqin Ding, MD, PhD, FASA
Laura A. Downey, MD
T. Miko Enomoto, MD
Angela Enright, MB, FRCPC
Annika Eyth
Katherine T. Forkin, MD
Mada F. Helou, MD
Vanessa Henke, MD
Lisa Isaac, MD
Allison M. Janda, MD
Annadita Kumar, MD
Hannah Lonsdale, MBChB
Sunny Lou, MD, PhD
Ying Hui YL. Low, MD
Nadia Lunardi, MD, PhD
Amy Miller Juve, EdD, MEd
Tiffany Moon, MD
Jennifer Rabbitts, MD
Vidya Raman, MD, MBA
Kimberly F. Rengel, MD, MSCI
Kristin Schreiber, MD, PhD
Carrie Schroeder, DVM, DACVAA
Shagun Bhatia Shah, MBBS, DA, DNB, FIMSA, MNAMS
S. Kendall Smith, MD, PhD
Audrey Spelde, MD
Jessica Spence, MD, PhD
Lauren Sutherland, MD
Jennifer Stinson, RN-EC, PhD, CPNP, FAAN
Theresa Tenge, MD
Erin Toaz, MD
Leslie Wann, BA
Liza M. Weavind, MBBCh
Elizabeth Whitlock, MD, MSc
Hannah Wunsch, MD, MSc
Wendy Yang
Manxu Zhao, MD

Ana M. Crawford, MD
Ingrid Moreno Duarte, MD
Kelly Fedoruk, MD
Brigid C. Flynn, MD
Diane Gordon, MD
Elizabeth E. Hansen, MD, PhD
Nazish K. Hashmi, MD
Erin K. Hennessey, MD, MEHP
Sakura Kinjo, MD
Ruth Landau, MD
Jill Mhyre, MD
Vanessa Moll, MD, PhD
Didi Odinkemelu, MD
Ameeka Pannu, MD
Emily A. Vail, MD, MSc
Emily Wasson, MD

Women in Anesthesia Breakfast at Annual Meeting

A group of women in anesthesia gathered together for a fun, open and energizing conversation during a networking breakfast at the IARS 2024 Annual Meeting. From work/life blending to how to advocate for yourself, the participants shared stories and advice on how they have navigated anesthesia and academia as a woman.

Women in Anesthesia Online Community

The Women in Anesthesia Online Community, supported by IARS, is dedicated to creating a safe and inclusive space for women physicians to discuss advocacy, mentorship, and other topics pertinent to the success of women practicing in the field of anesthesia. Join the conversation.