Nancy Spector, MD

Senior Vice Dean for Faculty; Professor of Pediatrics; Executive Director, ELAM and ELH; Executive Director, Lynn Yeakel Institute for Women's Health and Leadership

Department: Pediatrics

Research &
Academics
Background
Media/Publications/
Presentations

Education

University of Massachusetts Medical School

Awards & Honors

AAMC Group on Women in Medicine and Science Leadership Award for an Individual (2020)
SheForShe Award, Women in Medicine Summit (2020)
Elizabeth Bingham Award, Philadelphia Chapter of the Association for Women in Science (2020)
John M. Eisenberg National Patient Safety and Quality Award, Joint Commission and National Quality Forum (2016)
Advancement of Safety and Pediatric Hospital Medicine Quality Award (2015)
Cox Prize and Finalist, Harvard Business School and Harvard Medical School Health Acceleration Challenge (2015)
Miller Sarkin Mentoring Award from the Academic Pediatric Association (2014)
Elias Abrutyn Mentoring Award (2011)
Robert S. Holm Award (given by the Association of Pediatric Program Directors) to honor a program director or associate program director for extraordinary contribution in pediatric program director leadership (2010)
Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society
American Pediatric Society

Memberships / Professional Affiliations

Member, AAP Life Program Advisory Committee (2016–present)
Member, American Pediatric Society (2014–present)
Member, American Board of Pediatrics Education and Training Committee (2014–present)
Chair, APPD Faculty and Professional Development Task Force (2012–2015)
Member, Federation of Pediatrics Organizations' Task Force on Women in Pediatrics (2008–2014)
Co-chair, APPD Grassroots Forum for Associate Program Directors (2006–2010)
Vice-chair, APPD Faculty Development Task Force (2008–2011)
Co-chair, APPD Mentorship Program (2012–2016)
Co-chair, APPD Mid-Atlantic Regional Group (2007–2010)

Nancy Spector, MD, is the executive director of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine program, the Executive Leadership in Health Care program, and the Lynn Yeakel Institute for Women's Health and Leadership. She also serves as senior vice dean for faculty at Drexel University College of Medicine and is a professor of pediatrics. Dr. Spector is a graduate of Brown University and the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She completed her residency, chief residency and general academic pediatrics fellowship at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children.

Dr. Spector supplemented her educational portfolio with a fellowship in faculty development at Michigan State University and coursework in leadership and faculty development at the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Harvard Macy Institute. She was a fellow in the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) program in 2009–2010.

Dr. Spector joined St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in 1997 and, in addition to her other academic roles, she served as vice chair for education and faculty development, associate director of the Pediatric Residency program from 2002 to 2012 and program director from 2012 to 2016. She served as the associate director of ELAM from 2015 to 2016. Since 2016 she has been the executive director of ELAM

Her expertise extends broadly in academic pediatrics in the areas of curriculum design and implementation; evaluation methodology and process; faculty development; and mentoring. Her scholarly work focuses on the development and implementation of competency-based educational programs, mentorship, faculty development, professional development and leadership skills. She has been a leader of the I-PASS Study Group, a research group that focuses on patient safety and communications research and is a founder of the I-PASS Patient Safety Institute, which seeks to train institutions in best handoff practices and aid in their implementation.

In the Media

“Women are underrepresented in med school leadership. A Drexel program has trained hundreds to run medical schools around the country.”
Philadelphia Inquirer (March 6, 2024)

Leaders from RadEqual and the AAWR Sign MOU, Solidifying Commitment to Advance Opportunities in Radiology
PRWeb (May 9, 2023)

Women and Underrepresented Groups Face Higher Rates of Harassment in Academic Medicine, Study Finds
Emory Health Sciences (June 6, 2023)

Nancy Spector, MD, Named American Medical Women’s Association 2023 Elizabeth Blackwell Awardee
(February 2023)

"The Gender Myth in Medicine"
Exel, Drexel Research Magazine (2021)

"AWIS-PHL Honors Three College of Medicine Women"
(December 10, 2020)

Covid, Covid, Covid
Bloomberg Best (November 8, 2020)

Discussion of the widening gender gap in medical research on Bloomberg TV
MSN Money (November 4, 2020)

Bloomberg Markets: The Close
Bloomberg TV (October 27, 2020)

COVID-19 and the Slide Backward for Women in Academic Medicine
JAMA (September 17, 2020)

Covid-19 widened the gender gap among the world’s top scientists
Quartz (September 17, 2020)

A Physician, Not a Stereotype: The Role of Gender and Racial Implicit Bias in the Workplace
Becker’s Hospital Review (July 15, 2020)

"Women outnumber men at medical schools in Philadelphia area and across the nation"
Philadelphia Inquirer (December12, 2019)

"Drexel doctor: Gender disparities in pediatrics hurt patients and physicians"
Philadelphia Inquirer (November 14, 2019)

"Addressing the Lack of Women in Leadership Positions in Academic Pediatrics"
WIA Report (November 13, 2019)

Publications

Dr. Spector's scholarly activity includes:

Over 80 peer-reviewed articles, reviews and book chapters, and professional educational materials
Nearly 250 presentations, posters, workshops, CME courses and community presentations
18 visiting professorships

Recent Publications

"Leadership & Professional Development: Dis-Missed: Cultural and Gender Barriers to Graceful Self-Promotion"
Cristina R. Fernández, MD, MPH, Nancy D. Spector, MD
J. Hosp. Med 2020;8;494. doi:10.12788/jhm.3395

"Collateral Damage: How COVID-19 Is Adversely Impacting Women Physicians"
Jones Y, Durand V, Morton K, Ottolini M, Shaughnessy E, Spector ND, O’Toole J
J. Hosp. Med 2020;15(8):507-509. Published Online First July 20, 2020. doi:10.12788/jhm.3470

"Leading by Design: Lessons for the Future From 25 Years of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program for Women"
Jagsi R, Spector ND
Academic Medicine July 7, 2020

"Is Academic Medicine Making Mid-Career Women Physicians Invisible?"
Resa E. Lewiss, Julie K. Silver, Carol A. Bernstein, Angela M. Mills, Barbara Overholser, and Nancy D. Spector
Journal of Women's Health, online October 9, 2019

"Women in Pediatrics: Progress, Barriers, and Opportunities for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion"
Nancy D. Spector, Philomena A. Asante, Jasmine R. Marcelin, Julie A. Poorman, Allison R. Larson, Arghavan Salles, Amy S. Oxentenko, Julie K. Silver
Pediatrics;144(5):e20192149, November 2019

"Examining Gender Disparity in Medicine and Setting a Course Forward"
Nancy D. Spector, Barbara Overholser
JAMA Network Open, 2(6):e196484, June 28, 2019

"Patient safety after implementation of a coproduced family centered communication programme: multicenter before and after intervention study"
Alisa Khan, Nancy D. Spector, Jennifer D. Baird et al., on behalf of the Patient and Family Centered I-PASS Study Group
BMJ, 363:k4764, 2018

"Assessment of Women Physicians Among Authors of Perspective-Type Articles Published in High-Impact Pediatric Journals"
Julie K. Silver, Julie A. Poorman, Julia M. Reilly, Nancy D. Spector, Richard Goldstein, Ross D. Zafonte
JAMA Network Open, 1(3):e180802, 2018

Contact Information

Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine
2900 W. Queen Lane
Philadelphia, PA 19129
Phone: 215.991.8240
Fax: 215.991.8171

ELAM