Women in Health Innovation Spotlight: Dr. Mai Uchida

Dr. Mai Uchida, MD is the Director of Pediatric Depression at Massachusetts General Hospital, a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, neuroimaging researcher, and an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She is an international advocate for mental health, scientific literacy, and gender equality.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Uchida worked as a scientific communicator to address the vaccine hesitancy in Japan. She received the 2022 Japanese Minister of Health, Labour, and Welfare Award for the health impact she made, helping Japan achieve one of the highest vaccination rates internationally. Her 2023 book, "Social Justice" has become a Best Seller in Japan and impacted various discussions regarding communicating across the political divisions.

Currently, her research focuses on the brain functioning that underlies psychiatric conditions among children and adolescents. She works as a clinician for various age groups as well as young athletes. Dr. Uchida received her medical degree from Hokkaido University Faculty of Medicine and completed her residency at the Yale University Department of Psychiatry and Massachusetts General Hospital.

1. What was your experience like shifting from medical school in Hokkaido, Japan, to residency in the United States? And why did you make the transition?

The reason why I moved from Japan to the U.S. is because in medical school, there were only 15 women out of 100 students in my class who graduated in 2007, and many classmates openly talked about how they felt that women were not fit to become doctors. I wished for an environment that encouraged me to contribute to society and to continue growing as a person and professional.

The transition from Japan to the U.S. was very hard with regard to language and culture, but I have been so happy being in a place that allowed me to be by myself and be respected for it.

2. Your work in Japan during COVID made a dramatic impact on vaccination rates. How did you manage to share your story and factual vaccination information successfully and on such a broad scale?

While I was on national TV in Japan, I empathized with the hardships that everyone was going through during COVID and the anxiety that people were carrying about everything including the vaccination. Then I showed the scientific facts and clinical data and explained that while many people tend to focus on the risks of vaccination, we must also acknowledge the risk of not vaccinating. This conversation style seemed to have worked for people to think and decide for themselves what they needed to do.

3. Your expertise spans mental health, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and ADHD in children. Why did you choose to specialize in these areas?

There is much prejudice and misinformation surrounding mental health conditions surrounding children and I wanted to approach this area of medicine with science and empathy. I love seeing my patients and their families in clinical appointments and also researching about how mental disorders develop in the brain.

4. In some of your past work, you’ve referenced challenges you’ve faced when it comes to being a Japanese female physician in America. Can you share some of the challenges you faced and how you overcame them? Do you have any advice for other women facing similar struggles?

A big challenge I have faced was not knowing the expectations and social norms in the professional setting that are deeply seeded in culture. As a resident (a doctor in training), I did not know how casual or formal I should be with senior residents and attendings. I was not sure how much independence I should have vs. asking for help or confirming the course of patients' treatment, when I should speak out in a lecture, and when I should wait. It took me most of my 6 years of training and some more to feel comfortable with these decisions, and I think just the time that I have spent here has helped me through it. Additionally, to my surprise, what I learned during this process was that I did not need to entirely conform to the American norm either and that my Asian background which valued hard work, attention to detail, respect for seniors, and choosing to speak at specific times when I felt the needed actually was an appreciated quality of mine in the U.S. as well. Indeed, these stereotypically "Asian" qualities allowed me to grow and thrive as a physician, and now, I cherish them even more than before.

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