Pakistani-Native Dr. Iman Qaiser Serves Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma

Physician, Mother, Wife

In the wake of COVID-19, many have realized they want a multifaceted life in which career and family time are more in balance. For Dr. Qaiser, this was imperative. “I set out to find a field that fits my needs and those of my family. It was particularly important for me that I be able to care for people who may not have the best access to medicine. During my training in Pakistan, there was an abundance of patients who were underserved. As a result of that educational period, I feel that it is only natural to keep serving these patients,” she says.

Because of its flexibility, rheumatology is an ideal fit. “This is a family friendly field where one can be an active, involved doctor and mom—even if I’m on call, it can be remote,” says. Dr. Qaiser. “There is a set schedule in rheumatology, with a minimum of unpredictability. Rheumatology is also known as the ‘happiest specialty’ in medicine, largely because of the excellent female role models we have in our field. As I am training in a program with female leadership, I look forward to going to work where my female program directors, Samina Hayat, MD, and Sarwat Umer, MD, are perfectly in tune with my responsibilities and needs as a physician, mom and wife, while imparting to me excellent education and a paramount experience. Similarly, our program’s younger female faculty, Madiha Tariq, MD, and Kinza Muzaffar, MD, have embodied how to keep an admirable work-life balance with young children while excelling in [my] career.”