Women’s wellness through equity and leadership (WEL): A program evaluation

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The Women’s Wellness through Equity and Leadership (WEL) program was developed as a collaboration between 6 major medical associations in the United States. The goal was to contribute to the creation of equitable work environments for women physicians. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the pilot implementation of WEL. METHODS: Participants included a diverse group of 18 early career to midcareer women physicians from across medical specialties, 3 from each partner organization. WEL was developed as an 18-month program with 3 series focused on wellness, equity, and leadership and included monthly virtual and in-person meetings. After institutional board review approval, a mixed-methods evaluation design was incorporated, which included postseries and postprogram surveys and in-depth telephone interviews. RESULTS: Participants delineated several drivers of program success, including peer support and/or networks; interconnectedness between the topics of wellness, equity, and leadership; and diversity of participants and faculty. Areas for improvement included more opportunities to connect with peers and share progress and more structured mentorship. Regarding program impact, participants reported increased knowledge and behavior change because of their participation. CONCLUSIONS: This longitudinal, cohort initiative resulted from a successful collaboration between 6 medical associations. Evaluation findings suggest that providing opportunities for women physicians to connect with and support each other while building knowledge and skills can be an effective way to advance wellness, equity, and leadership for women in medicine.