In healthcare, personal protective equipment (PPE) that fits women properly is challenging to find. With gowns that are too long, and gloves, safety goggles and masks that are too big, the safety, health and performance of our female frontline workers is put at risk, on the job, every day. Female surgeons, who represent nearly 50% of all surgeons in the US, too often have little choice than to use instruments that were designed for the average male hand. This limitation has significant implications for their well-being. A “one size fits all” approach to product design has significant implications beyond gender.

This event will explore the problem, implications and solutions highlighting the bias in product design in healthcare, how one size NEVER fits all and how we can begin to solve through awareness, innovation and implementation.

RSVP

Contributors:

Hilary Gallin, MD, MBA is the creator of FastLine, a medical device that seeks to improve the safety and efficacy of gaining vascular access. She is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Anesthesia at Weill Cornell Medical Center - New York Presbyterian Hospital and completed her residency and fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. She started her career in the Healthcare Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs. Dr. Gallin holds a BS from Yale University in Biomedical Engineering, an MD from Washington University School of Medicine, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Nicole Jiam, MD is a neurotology surgeon-scientist at the Harvard Medical School & Mass Eye and Ear. She completed her otolaryngology residency at the University of California - San Francisco (UCSF) and received her MD degree from Johns Hopkins. Her research expertise is creating personalized treatments for patients with hearing loss, with the understanding that one size does not fit all. With her unique combination of clinical training, passion, and expertise in complex sound processing and her commitment to medical innovation, Dr. Jiam engineers innovative solutions, all in service of enhancing the quality of care for all patients and the treatments being offered.

Felicia Liang is a multidisciplinary product & service designer passionate about advocating for inclusive, accessible, and sustainable design. She has worked as a designer for Deloitte Digital, Google Education, and Intellect (Asia’s largest mental health startup) and is currently a lead designer at a Mobi, a Boston-based mobility startup. She recently completed her Masters in Design Engineering at the Harvard Graduate School of Design and School of Engineering & Applied Sciences where she focused on product design, behavioral sciences and women’s health.

Karen Korellis Reuther is an experienced creative executive, and a Design Critic at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. From 2021-2022 she was a Fellow at Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative (ALI). Prior to ALI she was Vice President Creative Direction + Innovation at Reebok and Global Creative Director at NIKE for twelve years where she developed major product, merchandising and brand strategies solidifying NIKE at the top of its industry. Karen is a designer, advisor & activist committed to “Inclusion by Design: Ending Gender Bias in Product Design”. Karen received her Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from Purdue University & her Masters in Business Management from Lesley University.