Women in Medicine & The Fertility Journey
In a heartfelt fireside chat, reproductive endocrinologist Dr. Natalie Crawford and pediatric critical care physician and researcher Dr. Anita Patel explore what it really means to navigate fertility as women in medicine.
This article unpacks their insights, from the realities of IVF during clinical rotations to the importance of speaking up at work, so that healthcare professionals can better advocate for themselves, their colleagues, and the next generation.
You can watch the full episode and earn free CE/CME credit by accessing this session on the Learn at Pinnacle app, where it’s part of an incredible lineup of content designed to support women in medicine on their personal and professional journeys.
Other topics covered in the full session include:
The emotional impact of miscarriage in medicine
How to balance patient care with personal care
Lessons from leadership and advocacy within hospital systems
Building generational change through transparency
Navigating fertility options like natural cycle transfer
Fertility Journeys Look Different for Women in Medicine
For many women in medicine, the path to parenthood doesn’t come with perfect timing—or a perfect plan. Training lasts longer than expected. Nights on call turn into years of waiting. And even when you finally get the chance to try, it doesn’t always go the way you hoped.
Dr. Anita Patel shares that her journey to motherhood wasn’t prompted by infertility in the traditional sense, but by a desire to protect future generations from a BRCA1 gene mutation discovered in her husband’s family.
“I was already later in life. I felt lucky to have options like IVF and preimplantation genetic testing… but I still didn’t expect it to be so hard.”
Despite not initially identifying with the term “infertility,” Anita soon found herself immersed in the IVF world, facing the emotional and logistical challenges that come with it. She chose a natural cycle transfer due to personal health concerns, including PMDD and a history of severe mood changes with hormonal birth control. The decision, she later discovered, resonated with many women with similar health profiles.
Medical Training Doesn’t Leave Room for Fertility Planning
Physicians often start families years later than the general population, which correlates with higher rates of infertility.
“In the U.S., 1 in 5 women will experience infertility. Among female physicians, it’s 1 in 4.”
And yet, this is rarely acknowledged in formal training or within healthcare institutions. Instead, many physicians don’t even realize options like genetic testing or fertility preservation exist until they’re already in crisis—or forced to make time-sensitive decisions under pressure.
IVF Isn’t Always About Infertility
As Dr. Patel explains, IVF can also be about proactive family planning, health risks, and preserving choice. She recounts, “I can’t tell you how many women messaged me after I shared. I had no idea so many of my peers had done this too.”
This illuminates a powerful truth: fertility challenges in medicine are more common—and more varied—than we talk about.
Career Pressure, Timing, and the Cost of Silence
Even with medical training and top-tier care, navigating fertility can feel like a full-time job—on top of the one you already have. For many women in clinical or academic medicine, it’s emotionally draining, logistically complex, and anything but straightforward.
Dr. Patel was juggling grant applications, attending duties, and pediatric critical care rounds while managing the unpredictable timelines of natural cycle IVF. She recounts the difficulty of scheduling:
“I kept pushing my date back—because I was on service, or had a paper due. And how crazy is it that I felt comfortable sharing with thousands on social media, but not with my male boss?”
When she finally did approach her leadership, the response was disheartening: “He told me to find coverage myself.” So she did—emailing her entire department for support. Every woman replied. So did every man.
Silence Doesn’t Protect You—It Isolates You
The first time around, Anita stayed quiet at work. The second time, she chose openness.
“I told my whole team—‘I’m going to monitoring tomorrow. Wish me luck!’” she says, laughing. “And I did the same while breastfeeding—I would pump on rounds. I even intubated and did central lines while pumping. We’re women. We can do everything.”
Still, the emotional toll of silence lingered. That fear of being seen as “less capable” haunts many women physicians. Dr. Crawford reflects:
“We’ve been told these things are going to hold us back. And in trying to prove ourselves, we don’t even give people the opportunity to show up for us.”
There’s a shared regret in that realization. But there’s also power in changing it moving forward.
Building a Culture of Support and Changing the Narrative
What echoed most in this conversation was the urgent need for a culture shift—one where fertility, family-building, and career growth aren’t treated as competing priorities, but as parts of a whole life worth supporting.
Dr. Patel is now a leader in her hospital’s Women in Medicine group, where they’ve launched “Fertility Fridays”—an informal support initiative that invites colleagues to connect, share resources, and advocate for one another.
“Even if you share your story with just one person,” she says, “that could be the person who sends the next woman to you when she needs help. That’s how we start shifting the culture.”
Leadership Through Transparency
Support doesn’t always require policy change—though that’s important, too. It starts with creating a safe space where colleagues feel empowered to speak their truth, request accommodations, and be met with compassion instead of judgment.
Dr. Patel emphasizes that sharing isn’t for everyone. “You don’t need to tell 50,000 people on Instagram. But if you tell one… you become a resource. You become part of the solution.”
“Your story is the pebble. You don’t always get to see the ripple, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t matter.”
Be the Mentor You Wish You Had
For readers in leadership or mentorship roles, the takeaway is clear: proactively create environments where younger physicians feel supported to pursue their personal and professional dreams simultaneously—not sequentially.
“We have the technology, the options, the access. We just need the support, and the permission to talk about it,” Dr. Patel says.
And that permission? It starts with us.
Conclusion: You’re Not Alone
Navigating fertility as a woman in medicine is never easy. But it’s a path walked by more of your peers than you think—and there is both strength and strategy in community.
Here are the key takeaways:
Fertility journeys in medicine are often delayed and complex—but they are not uncommon, and you deserve support at every stage.
Silence and shame don’t serve you. Even if you share with just one trusted colleague, you open the door for solidarity and change.
You can be both a physician and a patient. Trusting your care team and leaning on your community doesn’t make you less strong—it makes you wise.
✨ Now what?
→ If this resonated with you, share it.
→ Watch the full conversation with Drs. Crawford and Patel on the Learn at Pinnacle app.
→ Start the conversation at your institution. Be the leader you needed.
