The Professional Women in Healthcare® (PWH®) organization held its sixth annual PWH® Leadership Summit in Louisville, KY, April 29 through May 1, 2024. The PWH® Leadership Summit is our industry’s only conference dedicated to inclusive leadership development. Derby City was a fitting place to honor the legacy of PWH® and all the great organizations that have built our industry. Thanks to Summit sponsorship from 15 industry-leading organizations and for the generous support of 24 corporate partners, PWH® brought together 270 industry leaders.
“Legacy is an imprint with impact,” said PWH® Chair and Vice President, Innovia Corporate Sales, Allison Therwhanger, as she inspired attendees to be intentional about our “ripple effect.” Allison also reminded us that this year marks the 20th anniversary of PWH®. “The PWH® mission is our legacy—creating an inclusive healthcare industry equally led by women and men. I want to thank all of you who continue to support PWH® and our great industry.”
In the opening keynote, speaker Adam Markel discussed how resilience and adaptability can help you to bounce forward. With the right “recovery rituals” in place, we can better prevent burnout and fatigue by sustaining our mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being.
At day two of the Summit, Midmark sponsored a “Leadership Insights” session, where five industry leaders gave 15-minute presentations on leadership:
- Sharyn Ford, Strategist, Trainer & Coach, Strategic Visions International, reminded us that we are all still recovering from the pandemic world as we rebuild our lives. Her story urged us to strategically unplug regularly and build organizational capacity for resilience.
- Mark Zacur, CEO, Avantik, inspired us to learn from both effective (e.g., adaptable) and ineffective leaders. Our privilege to serve this great industry obligates us to instill passion in our teams to work and help people every day.
- Jessica Wells, Sr. Director, Customer Experience, Vizient, encouraged us to “tend” our legacy by first taking stock (looking behind, around, and clearing the clutter). Next, celebrate accomplishments before deciding how best to grow forward.
- Marisa Farabaugh, SVP/Chief Supply Chain Officer, AdventHealth, challenged us to engage lifelong learning and provided a three-step framework to bolster success: One: Learn something new. Two: Act on it. Three: Communicate and share it.
*This is edited down from a larger piece about the PWH Leadership Summit in a forthcoming issue of Repertoire.