A FEMALE surgeon has shared her journey as she's blasted through stereotypes in a predominantly male field en route to creating her own medical reality game show.
Dr. Erin Nance always knew she wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon and has not stopped striving to break the mold in her male-dominated field.
Inspired by the doctor she encountered after breaking her arm at age seven, Nance – who runs her own practice based in New York City – specializes in hand and upper extremity surgery but also offers traditional orthopedic care.
She spoke exclusively to The U.S. Sun ahead of International Women's Day about her journey from aspiring surgeon to owning her own business to developing her new reality TV show showcasing doctors.
“I knew from a very young age that I wasn’t going to settle for things just because I was a female – because I knew that I deserved better," Nance told The U.S. Sun.
“I didn’t know at eight years old that this was a field that was 94% male.
"I just knew that this was something that I wanted to do."
Nance shared that the field of orthopedics has been 94 percent male for over 30 years.
It's the “last bastion of medicine that is almost completely male,” she said.
“The needle has not moved for a very long time for attending surgeons.”
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COMMON MISCONCEPTION
The field of orthopedics itself is “not an inherently male field or concept," Nance explained.
"There’s nothing about using tools that you can only be a male to do it.
"A lot of people have this misconception that it takes a lot of strength to do things … most things in orthopedics you can handle with just excellent technique and skills than, say, strength.”
However, Nance has not let that misconception and the accompanying stereotypes stop her.
In fact, Nance has relied on other women in the field as she rose up the ranks from med school to professional.
“If I struggle with something, I’ll ask someone else to help," she said.
"We do things as a team, the field of orthopedics is not an individual sport.
“You don’t have to know how to do something 100 percent of the way.”
EMPOWERING WOMEN THROUGH HER WORK
Despite being in the minority as a woman in her field, Nance has found ways to empower other women through her work.
“It’s incredible to think that even a doctor can have an evolving career," Nance said.
Coming out of Covid – a time for health professionals that Nance called a “really dark time for medicine" – Nance has turned her energy to a new endeavor.
“Now, three years later, I really want medicine to be celebrated and even fun," she said.
After taking time to ask herself what she loved to do, Nance decided to create her own media company.
“I love operating and I love watching reality cooking television shows," she said. So she decided to marry the two – sort of.
She wanted to create a show that shows the various sides of doctors.
"They’re funny, they’re silly, they’re competitive," she said.
"I wanted to create a show where people would be inspired by these doctors because of who they are both as doctors and people."
The show – which is currently in development – is called Under the Knife.
It's a medical reality game show that's “meant to be fun and along the lines of” shows like Double Dare, Nance said.
With this new endeavor, she's aiming to bring “levity and escapism in the field of medicine" while "lifting the veil on what it’s like to be a doctor.”
It's all about "celebrating a doctor’s vulnerability – and that’s not something that’s currently seen," Nance said.
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S MONTH
March might be International Women's Month, but there are a handful of other holidays Nance pointed to, including National Women's Physicians Day, which was celebrated on February 3.
“I hope to see the day where that is not needed to be a day," Nance said, adding that she's "looking forward to having that holiday become obsolete.”
“I hope to continue to see stories like this throughout the year," and not just during the month of March, she said.
As a woman largely surrounded by men in her field, Nance also shared words of wisdom for other ladies in a similar position.
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“It’s really important to surround yourself with people who will amplify your voice," she said.
“The most important part is to show up as your authentic self.”
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