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Leadership rarely arrives as a clean promotion and perfect timing. Teresa welcomes Dean Debra Parker, a pharmacist, mentor, and longtime academic leader, for an honest talk about the moments that shape a career when you’re still figuring it out. From being “thrust” into leadership early to learning how mentorship works in real clinical settings, Deborah shares the turning points that built her confidence and clarified her values. 

We get specific about what pharmacy leadership looks like on the ground: ambulatory care practice, collaborative practice agreements, interdisciplinary teamwork, and the behind-the-scenes realities of billing, coding, and operations that can make or break patient care. Deborah also walks through the leap into academia to help launch a new pharmacy school and navigate accreditation, and why big, complex projects only move when you break them into milestones and communicate clearly about what you’re piloting. 

Then we zoom out to academic healthcare leadership today. The pandemic forced rapid change, online education expanded access, and student expectations keep shifting. Deborah explains why the hardest challenge is changing fast enough without stripping away what faculty love about their work. Along the way, we name imposter syndrome, bias, and the pressure women feel in rooms where they’re underrepresented, plus practical ways to delegate without guilt, stop self-disqualifying, and amplify other women so ideas and credit stick. 

If you care about women in healthcare leadership, healthcare education, mentoring emerging leaders, and building the courage to lead before you feel ready, this conversation will stay with you. Subscribe, share with a colleague, and leave a review so more women can find the show and step forward, too. What’s one leadership move you’ll make this month?