Dr. Arghavan Salles: On Hopelessness, Trusting What We Can't See and More

Episodes 6:

Arghavan Salles is a surgeon and researcher at Stanford who has the rare distinction of being a part of the direct treatment teams in two COVID epicenters – New York City and then Arizona. You may have seen her on national news including The Today Show as she documented and shared some of her journey. Diane Wilson wanted to hear and share more of the personal story and what has happened since: What is Dr. Salles' life like now and what was it like being a part of these teams? What do we know about COVID now that we didn’t know before, how likely is it we’ll have a vaccine soon? As a dedicated yogi, how has yoga figured in her life during this? Dr. Salles had just returned from Arizona when they spoke. What does she do to stay healthy in these hazardous situations? And now? What does COVID mean for her own employment? We see doctors as indispensable but so many organizations are affected by changes since COVID.

Dr. Salles is a national leader in diversity, inclusion, and equity, having earned a PhD studying these topics at Stanford University. Dr. Salles is also a surgeon and has extensive lived experience as a woman of color working in a male-dominated environment. Dr. Salles completed medical school and residency in general surgery at Stanford prior to completing a fellowship in minimally invasive surgery at Washington University in St. Louis. After staying on faculty in St. Louis for a few years, Dr. Salles moved back to Stanford in 2019 to work with the medical school on issues related to diversity and inclusion. Her research focuses broadly on gender equity, implicit bias, diversity, inclusion, and physician well-being. She is a sought-after speaker and has given over 50 national and international invited talks related to gender equity and sexual harassment in medicine.

Dr. Salles is a prolific researcher and writer, having had her work published in prominent medical journals such as JAMA Network Open and JAMA Surgery. She also writes for broad audiences through outlets such as USA Today, TIME Magazine, and Scientific American. She is passionate about helping women and under-represented minorities achieve their full potential at work.