Women lead three of Rio de Janeiro's largest emergency rooms.

Kamila, Paula, and Sandra. At the helm of three of the largest emergency rooms in Rio's municipal health network, these women coordinate large teams and make decisions under pressure, ensuring the functioning of one of the most important health services for the population of Rio. Leading the municipal hospitals Albert Schweitzer, in Realengo, Souza Aguiar, in the city center, and Salgado Filho, in Méier, the three directors symbolize a necessary advance: women taking on leading roles in positions historically occupied by men. This Sunday (8), International Women's Day, the Rio Municipal Health Department celebrates the female presence that transforms daily challenges into efficient management, humanized care, and commitment to life.

The three municipal hospitals concentrate high demand for care and are a reference in the areas where they are located. Paula Travassos is the director of the Souza Aguiar Hospital, in the city center, the largest emergency room in Latin America, with more than 2 employees. On average, the hospital attends to 500 people per day and performs more than a thousand surgeries per month. For her, dealing with this challenge, which involves people above all, requires sensitivity, active listening, and a balance of firmness and empathy, management skills and social commitment.

– Leading a unit of this size goes far beyond technical knowledge. In a network that operates 24 hours a day, with thousands of professionals serving hundreds of people daily, leadership needs to be inclusive, communicative, and strategic. Female leadership often brings a collaborative vision, an attentive eye to care and the collective construction of solutions. It's not about occupying spaces merely for representation, but about transforming those spaces with competence, responsibility, and humanity. My experience as a woman has taught me to lead with a balance between reason and sensitivity and has helped me develop the ability to remain calm, analyze the context broadly, and make responsible decisions without losing sight of the human element – ​​says Paula.

Director of the Albert Schweitzer Municipal Hospital since 2022, Kamila Conde leads a unit that handles more than 16 patients per month. For her, leading a large-scale emergency room goes beyond technical skills: it requires sensitivity and a comprehensive understanding of all parties involved, characteristics that her experience as a woman brings her. And, to assume this position, she emphasizes, courage is necessary.

– Female leadership tends to be more relational. I see in women a greater tendency towards approachability, dialogue, and collective construction. And in the hospital, conflicts mostly involve people, emotions, stories, and expectations. So having this ability to see the whole picture, to have a holistic perception, to understand the different layers of a problem and to anticipate impacts is something I consider an important differentiator in my leadership style. But it takes courage to occupy historically male spaces, to make difficult decisions under pressure, to maintain technical positions, and to navigate moments of instability without losing direction – says Kamila.

Before becoming director of the Salgado Filho Municipal Hospital in January 2025, Sandra Mello led the unit's emergency team, including during the Covid-19 pandemic. The doctor highlights this period as the most challenging of her career, especially as she simultaneously dealt with the loss of her mother due to the virus. Her history with the hospital began during her academic training.

– Salgado Filho Hospital is a reference point for the North Zone of Rio, with high demand and great complexity of care. Taking on this mission represents the consolidation of my career, which was built within the hospital itself. The direct impact that management has on people's lives is what motivates me; it's a tool for social transformation. In the emergency room, where decisions need to be quick and accurate, the combination of technical rationality and care for people is crucial. And my experience as head of the emergency room during the Covid-19 pandemic profoundly shaped my leadership style. Balancing motherhood, grief, and leadership required resilience, emotional balance, and a very clear purpose: to support my team and guarantee quality care for the population – says Sandra.

 

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March 8th, 2026

Appointments: directors emergencies medical women health