Abstract: FRI-05
Sources of Funding: None

Introduction

Upon reading this abstract title did you imagine Dr Gannon as a male urologist? Dr Mary Gannon was the 2nd woman, following Dr Elisabeth Pickett, to become a board certified urologist. She was the 1st female urologist elected to the AUA (1975).

Methods

We interviewed Dr Gannon and researched media, text and articles pertaining to her life and women in urology.

Results

Mary Louise Gannon was born in 1941 in Des Moines, Iowa. She grew up on a farm and aspired to become a veterinarian but was told she could not apply to veterinary school because of her gender. This led her to say "if you aren't going to allow me to take care of animals then I'll take care of humans."_x000D_ _x000D_ She was one of 5 women admitted to her medical school class at the University of Iowa, College of Medicine (1962-1966). She became interested in urology thanks to her mentor Dr Reuben Flocks and because she enjoyed endoscopy. After completing medical school, she applied to over 30 urology residency programs as "M.L. Gannon" and was accepted to multiple programs until they learned that the "M" stood for "Mary." Ultimately, 3 urology residency programs accepted her and she chose to train at the University of Wisconsin under Dr Weir and Dr Uehling. While in residency she stated she had great support from her attendings, was well accepted by her patients, but that the greatest resistance came from her fellow residents._x000D_ _x000D_ After completing her residency she had difficulty finding a job and tells of one "interview" where after spending a day with a practicing urologist, she was told that they were not looking to hire her but had "wanted to see what a female urologist looked like." The lack of equal opportunities as a urologist led her to open her own practice in Spencer, Iowa and she practiced from 1972-1984. She stopped practicing urology in 1984 because she said she was burned out. _x000D_ _x000D_ Her passion for counseling and working with patients led her to pursue training in psychotherapy and she completed a fellowship and was board certified in addiction medicine. Her mental health background gave her significant insight into her experiences. She feels that her isolation with no significant support system and a lack of lifestyle balance were what made her journey through urology so difficult and led her to eventually leave her field._x000D_

Conclusions

Dr Mary Louise Gannon is a pioneer in urology. Her story illustrates many of the hurdles women have worked to overcome in urology and highlights many current issues in our field. When asked what advice she had for women in the field today, Dr Gannon replied "First find your passion, but also remember you need to find a balance in your life. Seek out good colleagues as having a strong support group is important."

Funding

None