Fiona Wood is a surgeon who specialises in burns. She became prominent in the early 2000s after the Bali bombings, which killed hundreds of people and left hundreds more horribly burned. Fiona led the burns department of a Perth hospital which treated many victims.

Fiona invented spray-on skin, a revolution in burns treatment, and used that technology to treat people. She became Australian of the Year in 2005 and was voted Most Trusted Australian several years in a row.

Fiona was interviewed for International Women’s Day this year. She shared that a few years ago, one of her sons came over with his partner, a medical student considering becoming a surgeon. She was a member of a surgical interest group at her university, and they often had guest speakers present to them.

When the pair came over, she was upset. Two surgeons had come to speak to her group, a male and female, and said, “If you’re a female and you’re considering becoming a surgeon, think hard about what you really want. If you want a family, this is not the career for you.”

She was considering giving it up, as were other women in the group. Fiona, a mother of six children, wasn’t happy.

Fiona called the Dean of the university and asked to speak to the group. The Dean was more than happy for her to do so.

She introduced herself to the group. “Hi, I’m Fiona Wood. I’m a surgeon, so is my husband, and we have six children. So unless you’re prepared to have six children, you won’t be able to consider a career in surgery.”

A few people started to walk out, so she stopped them.

She said, “Hang on, two people stood here last week. They said that you shouldn’t consider a career in surgery if you’re a woman and wanting to have a family. I’m here, telling you I’m a surgeon with six children, and you don’t believe me. Be careful what opinions other people hoist on you.”