^{Shirin Doroudgar, PhD, with Taben Hale, PhD, and Francisco Lucio, JD, senior associate dean of the Office of Health Care Advancement}

The event to celebrate community, the arts, American Heart Month and women in health care

Seeking to further strengthen the bonds among female faculty, students and researchers, the Women in Medicine and Science (WIMS) group and the Office of Health Care Advancement at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix hosted a recent Winter Networking Event.

Highlighted with a performance by members of the Arizona Opera, the event fostered conversations about representation of women in medicine. To further its purpose, the event’s wardrobe theme was Go Red for Women — an ongoing campaign led by the American Heart Association to heighten awareness of the impact of cardiovascular disease in women.

Taben Hale, PhD, vice chair of the Department of Basic Medical Sciences and former director of WIMS, opened the event and spoke about the increased amount of female representation in tenured and permanent chair roles at the U of A College of Medicine – Phoenix.

“We’ve really seen incredible growth across this campus,” Dr. Hale said. “This is an interesting time in our lives. Community and advocacy for science and medicine are more important than ever.”

Shirin Doroudgar, PhD, an associate professor in the College of Medicine – Phoenix’s Department of Internal Medicine and current director of WIMS, who’s research involves molecular mechanisms of cardiovascular disease, discussed some facts about heart disease in preparation of American Heart Month in February.

“Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in men and women, globally and in the United States,” Dr. Doroudgar said. “Women often experience different symptoms than men, which can delay diagnosis and impact care.”

According to Dr. Doroudgar, Go Red for Women is about making women’s voices heard and valued. She expressed the same connections made in medicine can be made through the arts, especially the opera.

“From the very beginning, opera’s biggest stars were women, often the highest-paid performers of their time,” Dr. Doroudgar said. “Sopranos sang the most demanding roles, carrying entire operas like Madama Butterfly with stamina, intelligence, and emotional power. At a time when women had few public platforms, opera gave them a powerful voice and visibility.”

Fred E. Wondisford, MD, MS, MBA, dean of the College of Medicine – Phoenix, shared how events like these are personal for him because his wife and both of his daughters are in medicine.

“We’ve built a strong cohort of colleagues of both men and women,” Dean Wondisford said. “We can do more with diversity than we do when we think about it in a singular way.”

After the speeches, a pianist and opera singer from Arizona Opera provided a moving performance. The duo performed “Un bel di, vedremo” from Madama Butterfly and “Over the Rainbow” from the Wizard of Oz. The event concluded with a lively social networking time for all of the attendees. 

About the College

Founded in 2007, the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix inspires and trains exemplary physicians, scientists and leaders to advance its core missions in education, research, clinical care and service to communities across Arizona. The college’s strength lies in our collaborations and partnerships with clinical affiliates, community organizations and industry sponsors. With our primary affiliate, Banner Health, we are recognized as the premier academic medical center in Phoenix. As an anchor institution of the Phoenix Bioscience Core, the college is home to signature research programs in neurosciences, cardiopulmonary diseases, immunology, informatics and metabolism. These focus areas uniquely position us to drive biomedical research and bolster economic development in the region.

As an urban institution with strong roots in rural and tribal health, the college has graduated more than 1,000 physicians and matriculates 130 students each year. Greater than 60% of matriculating students are from Arizona and many continue training at our GME sponsored residency programs, ultimately pursuing local academic and community-based opportunities. While our traditional four-year program continues to thrive, we will launch our recently approved accelerated three-year medical student curriculum with exclusive focus on primary care. This program is designed to further enhance workforce retention needs across Arizona.

The college has embarked on our strategic plan for 2025 to 2030. Learn more.

By: Chase Congleton | February 5, 2026 | Original Post