Chicago Medical School Humans of IR
Simone Raiter
“Humans of IR” is a project by the SIR-RFS and Diversity and Inclusiveness Advisory Group which explores the origins, personal stories and connections that led our physicians to pursue a career in interventional radiology. Watch for entries in the series on SIR's instagram, @SIRspecialists.
How did you first discover IR? I came to IR because I was looking for something exciting, with balance. I'm a technical, hands-on type of person, but I also really like radiology and playing the game of “find the abnormality”—a bit like the I Spy or Where’s Waldo books. At the end of my first year in medical school, one of our classes required us to take a survey that matched you to a specialty based on your interests and skills. I remember going through the survey and specifically trying to match with surgery, and even doing that, radiology was rated, by far, as my number one match.
Why IR? I like that I don’t have to funnel into a certain niche or disease state, and that IR allows us to treat the whole body—so I essentially still have a foot in every single specialty. And I also like the instant gratification that IR offers. Instead of having to wait and see if your procedure has worked, a lot of IR therapies allow you to immediately see if you’ve helped.
Who is your biggest inspiration? Growing up in a single-parent household, it was just my mother and I, but I had a lot of female role models in my cousins and aunts. They taught me to go for what I want—whether that is a research position or a grant—so I’m a very determined person.
Seeing so many women together on the Women in IR (WIR) Section webinars has really helped.
I've also been inspired by Samdeep Mouli, MD, MS, who I worked with on the “Y-90 radioembolization to the prostate gland: Proof of concept in a canine model and clinical translation” abstract, which won abstract of the year at SIR 2021.
What are you working on now? During the pandemic, it became a daily routine to try to connect with people and feel like I'm part of a community online. Seeing so many women together on the Women in IR (WIR) Section webinars has really helped.
Geogy Vatakencherry, MD, FSIR, noticed that the number of women in IR dropped in applicants and leadership, so I thought we could do some hangout sessions to boost interest and support. I worked with resident Mari Tanaka, MD, at Massachusetts General Hospital, to put on a series of eight sessions in a week. We decided to organize 1-hour sessions with med students, residents and attendings, and we had this open discussion of whatever the students wanted to talk about. We have since decided to keep the calls going, and it’s nice to see people from all over the country on one phone call.
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