Message from the Chair

A welcome message from Dr. Stephen A. Pearlman MD, MSHQS

As my career reached a certain stage, I began to think a great deal about certain issues facing neonatologists of a certain age. I started to discuss these issues with other senior neonatologists, found that many were facing similar concerns and out of these discussions was borne the concept of forming a special interest group to address these issues. There are concerns about finances and malpractice insurance. Some individuals experience burnout and struggle to remain resilient toward the latter part of their career. How does one create a retirement plan or how does one negotiate the terms of one’s retirement? Is it feasible to opt out of night call at a certain age while minimizing the impact on the rest of your division? Should hospitals have guidelines or testing protocols for maintenance of skills to deal with aging or other issues causing impairment? How can we translate our skills into other opportunities?  Can we maximize mentoring opportunities?  How do you plan for succession while solidifying your legacy?

Admittedly, not all of these issues are unique to neonatology. But there are certain aspects of what we do that make some of these problems more challenging to address. This was the foundational concept upon which WECaN was formed. Since its inception we have had a number of presentations at the Workshop on Perinatal Strategies and the AAP National Convention. Our hope is that by creating a space for senior neonatologists to share and discuss these common experiences, we will increase involvement in the section activities in general, our interactions with the groups for early and mid-career neonatologists (TECaN and MidCaN) and help promulgate effective solutions to issues of concern.