Ahead of International Women’s Day this Sunday 8 March, we caught up with representatives from Liverpool’s Women in Surgery Society, Praveena and Aysha, and Khushi and Ruby from new society Women in Medicine to check in on their year so far and get their take on this year’s IWD theme ‘Give to Gain’.
What’s your society’s ‘raison d'etre’ in one sentence?
Praveena & Aysha: The Women in Surgery Society exists to empower, inspire and practically support women and allies pursuing surgical careers by increasing visibility, mentorship and opportunity within what has traditionally been a male-dominated field.
Khushi & Ruby: Women in Medicine is a new society this year and our goal is to give a wide range of people opportunities to teach others, share their passion and focus on wellbeing within medicine. It is a society open to everyone. Alongside this we aim to raise awareness of the disparities women face within healthcare.
What events and activities support this mission?
Praveena & Aysha: We work towards our mission by organising consultant-led career talks, skills workshops, talks on work–life balance and leadership, and networking events that connect students directly with female surgeons across specialties.
Women in Medicine committee (L-R)
Jaspreet Mander, Khushi Vij, Ruby Cutler & Jess Clark
Khushi & Ruby: We are starting small this year with the goal to grow our society further next year. We have hosted a crochet wellbeing session, teaching sessions, and charity events. Going forward, we plan to bring a range of healthcare professionals to speak about their careers, create more opportunities to focus on wellbeing, raise money for local charities and provide teaching for even more students.
Biggest highlights this academic year?
Praveena & Aysha: Our biggest highlight is set to be our upcoming Women in Surgery Conference, which will feature a series of skills workshops and consultant surgeon talks - an event we hope will bring together students across year groups and foster a strong sense of community and ambition. We want to build on this momentum by creating more hands-on surgical skills opportunities so that members feel both confident and supported in their career progression.
Women in Surgery Conference 2025
Khushi & Ruby: We have started a CPSA teaching series with a wide variety of sessions to help share our knowledge and create a space for people to develop confidence. It involves a range of in person and online sessions to try and be accessible to all. We are most looking forward to growing our society to allow more people a platform to share their passion for medicine, share knowledge with others and provide activities that support our wellbeing.
This year’s IWD theme is ‘Give to gain’, what does this mean to you?
Praveena & Aysha: This year’s International Women’s Day theme, “Give to Gain,” resonates deeply with us: by giving our time, experiences, mentorship and advocacy to one another, we collectively gain confidence, representation, leadership and a stronger future for women in surgery.
Khushi & Ruby: We are in the unique position as medical students to give back to our community, to learn from our communities and ultimately become better doctors. Through sharing knowledge and finding time to care for others we don’t end up with less – we instead grow ourselves and gain a deeper sense of purpose. What we can all remember is it is in the small acts of kindness and support that the greatest gains are made for the whole community.
Learn more about International Women’s Day events, resources and fundraising on the IWD official website. Follow societies Women in Surgery and Women in Medicine for all the latest initiatives and updates.