Dr. Pavan Bhatraju, recipient of Gender Equity Champion Award

Barbara Jung Gender Equity Champion Awards

Congratulations to the inaugural recipients of the Barbara Jung Gender Equity Champion Awards 

Dr. Pavan Bhatraju, associate professor of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine and researcher at the Kidney Research Institute, along with Dr. Alison Bays, assistant professor of Rheumatology, were presented the awards by Dr. Jung during Medicine Grand Rounds.

These awards recognize and celebrate individuals dedicated to supporting and advancing the success of women and gender minorities in medicine through mentorship, leadership, advocacy, teaching, and/or research.

Pavan Bhatraju, MD

 Dr. Bhatraju is an associate professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine.

He has long been an advocate and supporter of women/gender minority individuals through his consistent engagement while serving as a member of the gender equity council from 2021-2024.

Specifically, Pavan assisted in the development, piloting and subsequent roll-out of the Leadership in Faculty Trajectory (LIFT) program which was implemented with the goal to improve communication and transparency around the promotion process. The LIFT program aims to create formal routes for advice, dialogue and sponsorship that can help faculty feel more prepared for the promotions process and more supported in their career development.

He also takes a proactive interest in mentoring trainees at different levels of training, from college students to post-doctoral fellows. While recognizing that he is not a woman and also not considered underrepresented in medicine (URiM), he makes an intentional effort to mentor those who are URiM and tries to help develop a diverse mentoring team for the mentee.

Dr. Bhatraju is an outspoken proponent of term limits, providing more opportunities for people to lead who may not traditionally be chosen, thus opening up the door for more gender equity in leadership positions.