WDS Young Physician Spotlight Interview - Jordan Lim, MD

WDS Young Physician Spotlight Interview - Jordan Lim, MD
Interviewed by Brianna Olamiju, MD and Amaris Geisler, MD

 

1.) How did you become involved in the WDS and what benefits do you think WDS membership provides for residents/young physicians?

I first heard about WDS in residency and I actually served as a resident liaison for my program. Since then, I have attended many of their events – one most recent that I found incredibly impactful was their Women in Dermatology Collaborative Event at the AAD where a panel of several dermatology leaders addressed issues that women dermatologists face on a daily basis providing supportive tools and resources to combat these issues. Another memorable event was one of their virtual panels regarding family planning in an academic career where they hosted fertility experts, and had members share their personal experiences. This event literally brought me to tears. That is the impact of the WDS. All of their events are inspiring, approachable and directly applicable to the career of young physicians and residents.

2.) Are you in private practice or academics? At what point did you decide that you wanted to do private practice versus academics?

I currently work in Academics. I’m an Assistant Professor at Emory, the Director of Mohs surgery at the Atlanta VA, and an Associate Program Director for our residency program. Other than medicine, my main interest since high school has been education. This ultimately was the greatest driver for my pursuit of an academic career. While I kept my options open, and looked at career opportunities in both academics and private practice, I truly felt that to engage in education at the extent at which I knew would fulfill me (which is a lot of engagement), an academic environment felt like the right place. Beyond that exposure to my passion for education, academics harnesses a strong sense of community and collaboration that has proven fruitful for my career. Do I think being engaged in education, or having collaborative relationships is exclusive to academics? Absolutely not – I think that is a huge misconception. You can absolutely be engaged in education, participate in national committees, complete clinical trials, all while being in private practice. But the pursuit of these endeavors sometimes requires more intention when in private practice due to the lack of departmental funds or allotted time to pursue these passions. I have many friends and mentors in private practice that are achieving innumerable academic accolades. At the end of the day, I always recommend interviewing everywhere, setting your priorities, and figuring out what fits you best (regardless of the classification of academics or private practice).

3.) Advice to young physicians regarding leadership?

A few tips:

- You do not have to wait to become the boss to lead. Leading from within a group is a strong skill to hone and will serve you well for the rest of your life.

- Leadership does not always look like grand gestures and BIG ideas. Small actions of leadership go a long way to making a huge difference. Demonstrating in an encounter to a med student how you approach with humility IS leading. Showing up on time as a chief resident IS leading. Greeting your staff when you enter the clinic and always treating them with respect IS leading. We often get caught up in the grand gestures only…and miss out on all the small actions within a day that will impact those around you.

- Gaining recognition as a leader and developing those skills does not happen overnight. Approach overt opportunities for leadership with humility. You will get things wrong, and when you are willing to acknowledge that this is part of the journey, you will gain more respect and trust from those around you. There is a lot you can gain from these experiences, but you have to be willing to learn.

4.) Who were/are your mentors?

How much time do you have?! Here are a few:

- Carl Washington, Travis Blalock, and Todd Cartee for believing that I could be a Mohs surgeon, and consistently supporting me in achieving that dream.

- Sarah Arron and Maren Cotes for showing me the true meaning of ‘having it all’ – that is looks different for everyone, isn’t always glamorous, and that is doesn’t have to be.

- Ami Green and Claire Hollins, both previous co-residents of mine. These are very dear relationships to me because people always think your mentors have to be much more senior to you. With these two, I have this non-hierarchical, reciprocal, mentorship relationship that has been so impactful to my career.

- My mom, who is a strong female leader in her own right. She has continuously broke down barriers and entered rooms as the only female and risen to the top.

5.) What are you working on now?

I recently was honored with joining our residency leadership team at Emory becoming one of the Associate Program Directors. I have been placing a lot of energy into this role and the personal development required to best fulfill the needs of our residents. I know how great of an impact many of my mentors and my program leadership had on my development into the dermatologist and person I am today. I do not take this responsibility lightly and am really enjoying the steep learning curve to the role. As a compliment to this, I have been actively working on my leadership skills through Emory’s Junior Faculty Development Program, the ACMS’s Mohs Surgeons Leading the Future Program, and by attending the AAD’s Leadership Forum. (all programs that I would highly recommend!)

6.) Do you have advice to young physicians on achieving work/life balance?

A few tips that I’ve gathered below, with the caveat that I’m still trying to work on this myself:

1. What may be a great balance for me, will be very different for someone else. Figuring this out requires you to have a discussion with yourself, rather than seeking the answer from someone else.

2. This ‘balance’ will forever be changing – and that’s ok! This month, balance may look like long hours at the office and less personal time to finish a book chapter that you are excited about. Next month may be less time on work and more focused on family and friends during the holidays. It doesn’t necessarily always shift month to month…but absolutely over the years, priorities change, and that is completely normal.

3. Although I don’t entirely believe in “if you love your work, you’ll never work a day in your life”, I do think there is a small kernel of truth in that. A life in medicine is one filled with personal sacrifice. So, if you are going to be spending time and energy away from your loved ones or your other passions, ensure it also fills your cup and is worth that sacrifice. It will still feel like work, but will fulfill you in a different way than personal interests can.

7.) What do you like to do in your free time?

I’m a huge foodie, which has resulted in the necessity for my new pilates hobby. I also can always give you a great podcast recommendation.