One of the programs on her original list didn ’ t last long , though .
“ I was meeting with the program director and there were 108 residents at the time , but only six women . I asked why there were only six , and he said that women just weren ’ t good enough . This was 1998 and a program director told me that he didn ’ t have women in his program because they weren ’ t as good as men ! I walked out and didn ’ t even finish my interview . I checked out of my hotel and got the first flight home ,” she said . “ I always tell my students and residents when interviewing , it ’ s so important that you go visit in person to meet the people and make sure you fit in and feel good there .”
After narrowing down her options , she ranked the Medical University of South Carolina as her top choice and matched into internal medicine there in 1999 . She later stayed at MUSC for her two-year fellowship in nephrology . During internship , the nephrology fellows were often busy and would ask her to help with procedures , even getting calls after she was off that rotation because she ’ d gotten so good at them . She was later introduced to a general surgeon in Bamberg , SC , Dr . John Ross , who Dr . Dwyer said did it all . “ He would cut off feet , he would remove a gallbladder , he would do a colonoscopy , and then would work on a dialysis fistula . He really did everything .”
Working with Dr . Ross , Dr . Dwyer got to learn the basics of interventional nephrology , which would be officially recognized as a specialty in 2000 .
Dr . Ross was 99 miles away from MUSC , which meant an early 5:00 a . m . departure to make it there by 7:00 a . m ., and she put thousands of miles on her car that month . But it was worth it . This led to her being accepted into a training program at Emory
University with one of the five individuals who invented the field , Dr . Jack Work . In the spring of 2004 in her second year of fellowship , she spent three months at Emory training under Dr . Work .
“ The hands-on nature of interventional nephrology and the ability to do procedures really got me excited . I learned how to manage all aspects of hemodialysis vascular access including angioplasty , thrombectomy and stent placement . I also learned how to insert , remove and exchange hemodialysis catheters .”
She then became the first woman in the U . S . to be certified by the American Society of Diagnostic & Interventional Nephrology ( ASDIN ). “ It was amazing , to be training with John Ross and Jack Work , who started the field , and to be a part of the process from the beginning .”
Out of that extensive training , she was equipped with vast knowledge and a unique skillset to build her own vascular access center .
“ I interviewed all over the place for 10 months and I couldn ’ t get a job because no one knew what an interventional nephrologist was and they didn ’ t know they needed me ,” she said . “ Nobody would hire me , but then I met George Aronoff , who was the Nephrology Division Chief at UofL at the time , and honestly , I think he wanted the program more than I did . His vision and forward thinking were amazing . He said , ‘ Just come and see us , I will let you build this program however you want .’”
In 2004 , she was hired as the of Director of Interventional Nephrology and began building the program from the ground up . However , due to the newness of the field , some hospitals didn ’ t understand what an interventional nephrologist was and didn ’ t
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