The Association of Women Surgeons (AWS) medical school chapter at UNC held a fall wine and cheese event at the home of Drs. Melina Kibbe and Marco Patti on Wednesday, November 20th. The evening was an opportunity for female medical students interested in pursuing a career in surgery to meet with female faculty and surgical trainees. The night’s over 70 attendees were composed of UNC medical and undergraduate students along with residents, fellows and attendings from various surgical specialties, including plastic, cardiothoracic, ENT, orthopedic, vascular, general, oncologic, and trauma and critical care surgery. After starting off the evening with mingling and introductions, the event progressed to small group discussions allowing for more intimate dialogues with surgeons describing their career paths, providing professional advice, and answering student questions.
The event was organized and co-hosted by AWS co-leaders Alexis Flen, Meredith Park, and Sapna Patel and by Dr. Arielle Perez, the AWS faculty advisor.
The AWS, founded in 1981, is a not-for-profit educational and professional organization dedicated to enhancing the interaction and exchange of information between women surgeons with a mission to inspire, encourage, and enable women surgeons to realize their professional and personal goals.