As a surgeon-in-training, Soni Putnis was often the only woman in the room; now she is leading the first all-female team of trainee surgeons at Wollongong Hospital.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It was indicative of how the face of surgery was changing, Dr Putnis said, and was in line with social media trends (#thisiswhatasurgeonlooks like and #ilooklikeasurgeon) where female doctors were posting their pictures to counter stereotypes.
"We hope to attract the best candidates into the profession regardless of their gender," Dr Putnis said.
"However the fact is that 55 per cent of medical school students at the University of Wollongong are female - and that's typical of universities nationally - so we should start to see a more even gender distribution of surgeons.
"This will help change the stereotype of the grey-haired old man, who won't finish his sentences or look at you directly."
Dr Putnis said it was encouraging for women who wanted to become surgeons - and it was also of benefit to patients to have more choice.
"For instance as a general and colorectal surgeon, where patients have to discuss personal things, I know some women feel a lot more comfortable speaking to another woman about those things," she said. "It's simply a matter a choice."
Gender was never an issue for the forthright surgeon who completed her training in the UK before moving to Australia in 2009. She's been working at Wollongong Hospital for three years and helps train teams of junior doctors on rotation.
"This is the first time I've led an all-female team, and it's a first for the hospital too," Dr Putnis said. "The team is made up of a fully qualified fellow, three trainee surgeons and two junior doctors."
On its website the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons states that the college is "committed to expanding the number of women in surgical training and to ensuring the training programs do not disadvantage them".
Dr Putnis said: "Surgery is one of the last areas in medicine where there is a gender imbalance that should be addressed, and it seems we are getting there.
"I decided I wanted to be a surgeon when I was nine years old and while I was often the only girl in the room during training, there was never any discrimination.
"I'd like to encourage girls or young women to stay in surgery - I've got three kids and a husband and I've managed to juggle a very fulfilling career as a surgeon."