"Success in IC is definitely not gender-related" - An interview with Nicole Karam
Dr Karam, interventional cardiologist in Paris, tells us about her experience and shares her opinion on the profession.
Only personal skills, motivation and hard work are the keys to success, and those qualities are not gender-related.
Why are there still so relatively few women interventional cardiologists? Do you think that working conditions (e.g. exposure to radiation) may be an impediment on women embarking on this career path?
I guess lots of female cardiologists are reluctant to get in the interventional field due to fear of radiation exposure and concerns regarding future pregnancies and, in some cases, to dissuasion by their peers or mentors.
Of course, I don't think that there is any real obstacle for women embarking on this career path. With good use of radiation protection equipment and techniques, which, by the way, are mandatory regardless of gender, professional exposure to radiation has really decreased nowadays and should not be an issue.
Aside from radiation, working conditions are not harder on women than on men, and there is no fundamental reason for males precluding women from achieving a successful carrier in interventional cardiology.
Nicole Karam
What made you choose this specialty?
I was fascinated by interventional cardiology after attending the first primary PCI during my medical studies.
Later, during my cardiology studies, I was further attracted by this field after I learned more about structural interventions, and I realized the potential for innovation and creativity in this domain.
What is the main obstacle you have encountered to become an interventional cardiologist? How did you manage to overcome this?
I did not encounter any real obstacle except for some dissuasion attempts by some older colleagues.
However, I saw these attempts as a challenge that further encouraged me to continue in this path and to prove that despite being a woman, I can succeed in this masculine field.
From your point of view, what are the main assets you may have as a woman, compared with your male colleagues?
I personally don't consider that there are assets or weaknesses related to gender in interventional cardiology. Only personal skills, motivation and hard work are the keys to success, and those qualities are not gender-related.
Do you feel your patients have a different attitude to you because you are a woman? Do you feel your colleagues treat you differently because you are a woman?
I do have from time to time a patient or a colleague who treats me differently because I am a woman. Some patients, particularly the elderly, might show some hesitation when they realize that their doctor is actually a woman. However, professionalism and self-confidence help to reassure them.
This is something that lots of female doctors, and not only interventional cardiologists, can experience during their carrier. However, I do have the feeling that with time, this kind of situations tends to happen less frequently.
What advice can you provide to young women fellows wishing to pursue a career in interventional cardiology?
I would encourage them to follow their dreams, and not to let any potential discouragement by their peers or their society get in the way of them achieving their target.
Success in interventional cardiology is definitely not gender-related.
