Following her footsteps: female representation in global health matters

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Sophia Aguja, a 22-year-old medical student at the Faculty of Medicine of Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

It’s been 82 years since the first woman graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at San Carlos University in Guatemala. Doctor María Isabel Escobar led the way and marked the path that many women still follow nowadays to fulfill our dreams of becoming doctors and make a change in our country and the world.

It is no secret that in the last 20 years, women have increased their participation and interest in health-related careers, although there have been barriers to overcome, with each new generation of female doctors the opportunities open for more women to have the chance of becoming leaders in global health. 

In Guatemala the majority of medical students are women, in fact female students participate more than men in both academic and extracurricular activities, showing our leadership and ability to innovate in the health system. According to a study made by Harvard Business Review, prove that women’s skills are being better valued by employees, meaning they are more capable of holding leadership positions, but even so, we continue to be denied these places due to retrograde and sexist beliefs that only affect the progress of society.

It was only in 2024 that the first female executive director of one of the largest and most important hospitals in Guatemala was granted this position, which makes me think, how much longer do women need to wait to be acknowledged as an important figure in the health system? Can the medical field in third world countries give us more opportunities to shine and demonstrate our ability to lead and innovate in medicne?

That is why it is so important that all girls have someone to look up to and aspire to be like other female colleagues in the medical field that can hold leadership in global health. Representation matters.

But this can only happen if we promote the participation of more women as leaders, in the different fields of medicine such as Family Medicine, Surgery, Public Health, and many more.

In my journey through medical school I have met incredible women who inspire me to move forward, to believe in myself, and to always seek to lead in medicine for the good of society.

Like Doctor Nancy Sandoval, who throughout her career demonstrated her leadership as President of the Central American and Caribbean Association of Infectious Diseases, being a reference and researcher on infectious diseases in Guatemala, in addition to being the president of the Executive Committee of the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing Word (OWSD) during the period 2022-2024. Or Doctor Elena Tuna, an hematologist and transplantologist who continues working in the research field for clinical purposes with international teams (Mexico and France), she’s also the author of different books about hematology.

In conclusion, although great progress has been made in the representation of women in medicine, there is still a lot of work ahead, and we must motivate women to aspire to important leadership positions for the benefit of our society.

Reference

Cetino, R. (2022, octubre 19). Biografía de María Isabel Escobar, primera pediatra en Guatemala. Notas para Aprender sobre Guatemala | Guatemala.com; Guatemala.com. https://aprende.guatemala.com/historia/personajes/biografia-de-maria-isabel-escobar-primera-pediatra-en-guatemala/

Nancy Virginia Sandoval. (2022, julio 27). Guatemaltecosilustres.com. https://guatemaltecosilustres.com/index.php/2022/07/27/nancy-virginia-sandoval/#:~:text=Fue%20electa%20como%20presidenta%20del,y%20del%20Caribe%20de%20Infectolog%C3%ADa.

Rosener, J. B. (1990, noviembre 1). Ways women lead. Harvard business review. https://hbr.org/1990/11/ways-women-lead

About the author

Sophia Aguja is a 22-year-old medical student at the Faculty of Medicine of Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala. She is also part of the International Federation of Medical Students Associations since 2020. She is passionate about the issue of gender equity and equality in the medical field, both for female doctors and patients. 

She aspires to be a world leader in medicine, helping her country and the world to fight the problems that negatively impact global health.