Today, we are joined by Dr Jailyn Avila from San Diego in Southern California. On Jailyn’s website, she describes how she was born into an immigrant military-conservative family. After leaving home and getting married, she slowly realised her true self. After completing medical school, and an emergency medicine residency, she transitioned to the transgender woman she is today and settled back into San Diego with her wife and 3 children.
Today we talk wtih Jailyn about her forks in the road through her career. She is a board certified emergency physician, passionate about clinical excellence and education. And she is an inspiring advocate for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in medicine, sharing her experiences as a transgender woman, to foster a more inclusive healthcare environment.
I recommend you to Jailyn’s blog on her website, for her honest, deeply personal and inspiring writing about life as a transgender woman. It is a worthy read for all of us.
Key moments in the podcast:
00:00 Lessons from Failures
0:33 Introduction to the Podcast
01:09 Meet Dr. Jailyn Avila
03:12 Rapid-Fire Questions
09:11 Advocacy and Personal Journey
15:07 Early Years and Education
22:54 Deciding on a Medical Specialty
23:28 Challenges and Triumphs in Med School
25:10 Discovering a Passion for Emergency Medicine
28:06 Learning from Failures
31:08 Understanding Systems in Medicine
36:08 Journey into Medical Education
41:01 Final Thoughts and Reflections
Here is what stays with us from this conversation:
Embrace Lifelong Growth and Adaptation
Cultivate structure as a foundational element for early life, while actively seeking spontaneity for richer personal fulfillment.
Harness lessons from challenging experiences, recognising the inherent capacity to push beyond perceived physical and mental limits.
Find strength and humility in new endeavours, embracing the experience of being a novice even after achieving professional mastery.
Champion Comprehensive and Empathetic Care
Dispel superficial perceptions of a field by engaging deeply with complex challenges and embracing intellectual curiosity.
Strive to see the "whole picture" in patient interactions, recognising and valuing individual perspectives, life experiences, and expectations.
Transform Setbacks into Learning Opportunities
Acknowledge and learn from failures as essential catalysts for building resilience and cultivating professional respect.
Cultivate meticulous preparation and thorough critical thinking to prevent future errors, driven by lessons from past mistakes.
Embrace a humble mindset, continuously questioning assumptions and seeking deeper understanding to inform practice.
Foster Clear Communication and Collaborative Understanding
Translate complex professional information into accessible language, effectively bridging gaps in understanding with those outside the field.
Educate and inform with empathy, explaining the 'why' behind decisions to promote greater engagement and comprehension.
Recognise the patient as the ultimate expert in their own body, facilitating shared decision-making and holistic care.
Ignite Passion Through Purposeful Education
Leverage personal learning challenges and the need to simplify complex topics as a pathway to develop effective teaching methods.
Create and refine educational content as a potent means of solidifying one's own understanding and mastery of material.
Share knowledge broadly, recognising that personal clarity and accessible explanations can illuminate pathways for countless others.
Cultivate Authenticity and Inspire Through Visibility
Overcome internal and external prejudices through profound self-acceptance and a committed journey of personal growth.
Provide visible examples of diverse experiences and identities to inspire, affirm, and offer hope to others facing similar journeys.
Open conversations by sharing personal narratives, fostering understanding and challenging misinformation with lived experience.
Adopt a Long-Term Perspective in Decision-Making
Evaluate immediate challenges and choices through the expansive lens of one's entire life journey, not just the present moment.
Prioritise future pride and fulfillment over temporary discomforts or present chaos when making significant life decisions.
Make decisions that align with a broader vision of well-being and purpose, ensuring actions contribute to a deeply fulfilling life.
Connect with Jailyn Avila
Recommended reading - Jailyn Avila’s blog post on her website
Listen to this podcast on Spotify or Apple or subscribe to it on Substack. We would love it if you would leave us a comment, screenshot the episode and tag us on social, and share this episode with your community so that they can better navigate their forks in the road.
This is an original podcast by Flyntrok. We help organisations, communities and individuals change and adapt to a new world. You will Find Flyntrok on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.
Hosted by Stephen Berkeley and Anne Boland
Produced by Rajeev Nedumaran of Studior.
Music by Damian Smith of Bespoke Music.
Art work by Ben Tibbin of Mozmo Creative and
Social Media Creations by Alana Rauert of Muse Communications.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this episode were those of the hosts and the guest, not of any entity they work for or with.
