Uta Merle studied medicine at the University of Mainz, where she received her doctorate in 2001. She began her clinical training as an internist and gastroenterologist in 2000 in the Department of Gastroenterology at Heidelberg University Hospital. After the birth of her son in 2008, she also became managing senior physician in the same year and, from 2012, deputy medical director of the department, and then headed it as acting medical director from 2018 to 2022. From the beginning, her clinical focus was Wilson’s disease, in which she also received her habilitation in 2008 and an adjunct professorship in 2011. The clinical focus of her work for many years was intensive care medicine, with senior physician management of the gastroenterological intensive care unit from 2009 to 2021. Since 2021 she has been head of the transplant hepatology section.
Since the beginning of her time in Heidelberg, the scientific focus of her research has been Wilson’s disease. She researched various approaches to gene therapy for Wilson’s disease in animal models. In 2002 she had the opportunity to research the project “Lentiviral gene therapy for Wilson’s disease in an animal model” as part of a research stay lasting several months at the Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (IRCC, Turin, Italy). She received research funding from the Medical Faculty of Heidelberg University as part of a junior funding program and as part of the postdoc program. In addition, her research on the pathophysiology of Wilson’s disease was funded by the DFG. Another hepatological research focus in basic science is the iron storage disease hemochromatosis.
At the beginning of the corona pandemic, she also began intensive research on COVID-19 and post-COVID and is co-author of more than 60 publications on this topic. She is currently working as clinical project manager for the Heidelberg site of the multicenter post-COVID EPILOC study funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research and Art and in another project on metabolome changes in post-COVID, also funded by the MWK continues to work intensively in this area of research.
Growing through challenges and broadening your horizons
When asked about the success factors, Uta Merle explains: “What has helped me personally on my professional path is my ability to see obstacles and challenges as development opportunities. Thanks to my curiosity and the joy of learning new things, I was ultimately able to maintain the fun of my work and my motivation to this day. Scientific work is a real enrichment – even if, as a clinical and scientific woman working in German university medicine, you still find your special challenges today. Ultimately, you grow with every challenge, so you shouldn’t let it discourage you.”
Regarding her role as a woman, Merle explains: “University medicine and the world of work as a whole can only benefit from gender equality. Diversity makes teams successful – and this applies not only to gender diversity, but also to cultural diversity. In addition to diversity, I also see good interprofessional collaboration, be it in the research laboratory or in the clinic, as an enrichment and success factor.”
When asked about compatibility, Uta Merle sums up as follows: “I see the main factor for the success of combining family and work in the will to do so – both on the part of superiors and colleagues, as well as on your own. Because the image of the “good mother “In Germany it is still very traditional, it is also important as a scientific doctor to recognize social patterns into which one could fall in order to correspond to cultural ideas and habits. “
“But since, in addition to the interesting and motivating work, times for reflection and broadening my horizons are also important, I was currently on a sabbatical and in New Zealand for three months, which I really enjoy. And at the same time, after nice hikes or other great experiences, I’m always happy to be able to work on my research projects here in New Zealand and, at the same time, be able to complete a very interesting Master’s in Health Business Administration course in a hybrid manner.”
I would advise women who enjoy science and professional challenges to keep asking themselves what is really important and the focus at the moment. This can also be your non-work life or your children for a longer period of time – and then there are other phases in which you focus particularly on your science or your clinical work. I believe that you have to find the best path for yourself and exchanges with colleagues and mentors can be very helpful here – to exchange ideas about pitfalls, but especially the positive things in the “university shark tank”. My son recently explained to me on the occasion of the sharks here in New Zealand that sharks are actually not as dangerous as you think…”
The equal opportunities team congratulates Uta Merle on her above-average successes and wishes her all the best for the future!
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