Three doctors from UCLA Health Santa Clarita led sessions during the College of the Canyons 2021 Women’s Virtual Conference last week. The conference’s theme was “Empowered Women” and focused on health, wellness and balance.
Dr. Jane Dascalos and Dr. Mona Ranade jointly presented on “breast imaging and the use of interventional radiology to treat conditions such as uterine fibroids, without surgery,” according to the event program.
Dr. Ramya Malchira’s presentation focused on COVID-19 and “the most commonly asked questions, facts and myths about receiving the immunization.”
Rian Medlin, human resources director at College of the Canyons, chaired this annual event, which offered 30 sessions March 25-27.
“Some of highlights included a powerful discussion on life in the Santa Clarita Valley through the eyes of four African-American women, a panel session led by our Associated Student Government students on leading with balance and resiliency, and a fun session from a cross-section of faculty and staff on keeping busy during a pandemic,” Medlin said in a written statement.
The COC 2020 Women’s Conference was postponed to 2021 due to the pandemic.
Three hundred people registered for the conference, or nearly double the number of registrants compared to prior years. The conference was held virtually for the first time this year.
“Being virtual has allowed us to reach people that may not have been able to join otherwise given their own health, mobility, or constraints on their time,” Medlin said. “Offering a virtual component creates flexibility for participants and opens the college to new opportunities to engage a wider audience on women’s issues.”
Medlin added that a virtual format “has provided a level of access that we will keep in mind even when we can be in-person again.”
The Women’s Conference committee will meet in the coming weeks to review the survey responses from this year’s participants and begin discussions about next year.
More information about the COC 2021 Women’s Virtual Conference is available at www.canyons.edu/community/womensconference.
