The International Women’s Surgical Society (IWSS) at Tbilisi State University (TSU) is working to empower women who are interested in entering the surgical field, an industry that has a history of being male-dominated in most countries.
TSU’s branch of the society was established in December 2023 by co-founder Shiona Fernandes. A fifth-year student studying medicine, Fernandes says there were numerous organizations for medicine, but all of them had a strong male presence, and she wanted to create one that was female-oriented to empower women in surgery. Fernandes tells GEORGIA TODAY that TSU’s branch of IWSS is the first one to have been formed in Georgia.
The organization is not only for medical students, but also for female doctors to have a platform where they can share the challenges and experiences they face in the field, and how they have overcome any difficulties. Having this two-way conversation between professionals and students who are striving toward the same career gives assurance that it’s a profession in which females can be successful.
Since Fernandes says male dominance in surgery is an international issue, with what she says is about a 3:1 ratio, IWSS has encouraged students in other countries to also open IWSS branches. After IWSS was formed at TSU, Fernandes and others used their connections to encourage chapters that have launched in Mumbai, India, the UAE, and Oman. Although there are several reasons why females stray away from entering surgery as a profession, Fernandes explains that sexual harassment plays a decisive factor that holds students back from pursuing it.
Various international reports can be found that explain accounts of sexual abuse, or which detail sexual harassment that has occurred in the workplace, Fernandes tells us. Indeed, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) published a report in March 2024 that explains the gender parity in the field, highlighting sexual harassment as a key indicator.
“20% of plastic surgery residents (72% of them were women) experienced sexual harassment. In addition, most (74%) did not feel comfortable reporting it,” wrote ASPS in relation to a study done on plastic and reconstructive surgery.
To combat these challenges within the industry, IWSS holds events and conferences for students and professionals alike to share their experiences and educate others. On November 30 and December 1, IWSS held the ‘Blades over Beauty’ conference, which focused solely on plastic surgery. Fernandes explains how various conferences can be found in Georgia in relation to the medical industry, but it’s rare to come across one tailored to plastic surgery.
The conference united more than 200 attendees, including students, volunteers, and medical professionals. Its aim was to focus on the precision of the blade and the empowerment of women. There were presentations, workshops, discussions, and more during the two-day event. Numerous procedures fall under plastic surgery, including breast implants, liposuction for fat removal, facelifts, reconstruction after skin burns, aesthetic gynecology, and many others.
Nearly all of these topics were covered, even those involving dentistry, which Fernandes says many people don’t often associate with medicine. There were various workshops during Blades over Beauty to get participants actively involved in the learning process. One was a plasma pen workshop where attendees did incisions on chicken limbs; then there was a cosmetic suturing workshop. During this, Fernandes says everyone took needles and sutured, which is similar to sewing or stitching, on a suturing pad. Then there was lingual suturing, where participants took extra skin from an animal tongue and practiced suturing and reconstructing it.
Although IWSS was established to empower women in the surgical field, males were also allowed to attend the conference: it was open to all medical and dental students regardless of which university they attended. Fernandes tells us that this field is especially important to highlight within Georgia, because the profession sees a smaller amount of plastic surgeons coming in compared to other countries.
“Plastic surgery is still not fully discovered in Georgia. There were Georgian students in attendance, so I hope that, through this, plastic surgery can start to get recognition in the country,” says Fernandes.
Among the speakers were Dr. Mariam Tamar Miladze (aesthetic doctor), Dr. Sopiko Azrumelashvili (dermatologist and cosmetologist), Dr. Lika Kakachisvili (plastic surgeon), Dr. Noury Adel (oral and maxillofacial surgery specialist [MSc]), and Dr. Tamari Darjania (dermato-cosmetologist). This is the third conference IWSS has held since it opened its chapter last year. Previous conferences focused on general surgery, and one was carried out in collaboration with Dandy Georgia, a neuroscience club. IWSS is currently available for all medical students at TSU, and there is also a dentistry division to empower females entering or working in dentistry surgery.
By Shelbi R. Ankiewicz
