Inspirational Women in Emergency Medicine – Highlighting Dr. Gillian Schmitz

I remember my first time attending the ACEP council meeting was in 2022. It was equally fascinating and overwhelming, but one thing that stood out to me was the sense of awe, pride, and inspiration I felt at the conclusion of two packed days of ACEP Council when we were met by a force of female leadership. Dr. Gillian I remember my first time attending the ACEP council meeting was in 2022. It was equally fascinating and overwhelming, but one thing that stood out to me was the sense of awe, pride, and inspiration I felt at the conclusion of two packed days of ACEP Council when we were met by a force of female leadership. Dr. Gillian Schmitz gave her end of term speech as ACEP president at the time, and it was announced that Dr. Aisha Terry was chosen as president-elect. Dr. Kelly Gray-Eurom was addressed throughout the entire meeting as Madam Speaker, and Dr. Melissa Costello was our vice speaker. What a moment for me as a female resident in emergency medicine!  Since then, as I have become increasingly exposed to the leadership and effort behind ACEP, I’ve grown more inspired by so many women having a seat at the table. This sentiment has only gotten stronger on the heels of Dr. Allison Haddock being voted as the next ACEP president-elect in 2023. The women who have sat at this table, and sit at the table now, continue to guide and lead us as a specialty with grace, confidence, vigor and strength.

As the year came to a close and I pondered my own career path, I wanted to reach out to some of these amazing women and ask them to share their words of wisdom with us. I proposed three questions:

• What has surprised you, or what have you learned about serving as the ACEP president (past, current or elect) and having a voice at the table of the ACEP board?
• What advice would you give to women in emergency medicine who are interested in leadership and advocacy in their career?
• What are some other ways women can make an impact on emergency medicine if they feel that being a leader or becoming the ACEP president may not be their goal or career interest?

To start us off, Dr. Schmitz has graciously shared her responses in the form of a video to us. Not that she needs an introduction, but here are some of her career highlights. She currently is an associate professor in the Department of Military and Emergency Medicine at Uniformed Services University of the Health Science, Vice Chair of Education at Brooke Army Medical Center, and Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Texas Health in San Antonio, TX. She was elected to the ACEP board in 2016 and again in 2019 and voted as President-Elect for 2020-2021. She subsequently served proudly as our president from 2021-2022. Additionally, Dr. Schmitz previously held many other ACEP leadership positions including Chair of the Academic Affairs Committee, subcommittee Chair for the Medical Legal Committee, and Chair for the Young Physicians Section. Furthermore, she is a former Emergency Medicine Resident’s Association (EMRA board member, and president of the Government Services Chapter and is currently an active member in the Texas ACEP chapter. She is a former EMF grant recipient, published author, and reviewer for several medical journals. Dr. Schmitz has received numerous awards including the National Early Career Faculty Award from the Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM), EMRA’s 45 under 45 and Mentorship Award, and ACEP’s National Teaching Faculty award.

 Watch Here

At the 2023 ACEP Leadership and Advocacy Conference, the AAWEP section hosted a pre-conference Power Up session, and closed the event with a panel of many of these amazing female leaders. If you haven’t yet, I encourage you to check out this brief article summarizing the event as well: https://www.acep.org/home-page-redirects/latest-news/our-favorite-quotes-from-aaweps-why-lead-now-panel.  As you listen to Dr. Schmitz’s responses and visit the favorite quotes, I encourage you to reflect on what role your current participation in emergency medicine means to you, what you would like to change, and how you would like to make it happen in 2024. I know for me, I will continue to draw inspiration from the wonderful women who sit at this proverbial table of emergency medicine. Let’s keep the momentum of female leadership in our field strong and everlasting.

Joan Chou, MD
Senior Resident Representative