Education
and Outreach Initiatives
National
Women’s Health Information Center
The National Women's Health Information Center
(NWHIC), acts as a Federal "women's health central" for the public, health care
professionals, researchers, and the media. With access through both a toll-free telephone
line and the Internet, the NWHIC reduces to a single point of entry the vast array of
information available through the more than 80 Federal health clearinghouses ad hundreds
of private sector organization resources. The NWHIC allows users to link to, read, and
download a wide variety of women's health-related material developed by the Department of
Health & Human Services, other Federal agencies, and private sector resources. NWHIC
was formally launched on November 1998, and has been named as a top health web site by
numerous media organizations.
The program manager for NWHIC is Valerie Scardino.
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Pick Your Path
to Health Campaign
It is very common for women nowadays to have multiple demands on their time. The Pick Your Path to Health Campaign, sponsored by
the Office on Women’s Health, helps women take simple and time-sensitive steps to
improve their health, and will encourage local communities to promote practical,
culturally interesting, and relevant action steps to wellness. Previous health campaigns
aimed at women have emphasized long-term goals, such as losing weight or quitting smoking.
In a departure designed to work with today’s multi-tasking, multi-cultural society,
this new approach will suggest specific, life-oriented action steps, such as taking the
stairs instead of the elevator and eating more fresh fruits and vegetables, so woman can
manage their time and their health, one step at a time, in a single action.
The Pick Your Path to Health
campaign will encourage health awareness among all women, with special emphasis on
African American, Asian American/Pacific Islander, Hispanic American, and American Indian
and Alaska Native women, who as minorities, face disproportionate obstacles to health
care. The campaign focuses on Healthy People 2010 objectives, the nation’s health
agenda. Through public/private partnerships campaign materials are distributed to local
neighborhood groups and local media, trusted by minority women, so that the information
can be transformed into formats and messages most appropriate for those individual
communities. Educational materials are available on-line for community groups wanting to
be a part of this important campaign. Click
here to access the Community Action Kit.
The OWH contact person is Sharon Ricks.
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Cardiovascular
Education Initiative
The FY 1997 Senate Appropriations Committee Report Language noted concern that
cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke, remain the No.1 killer of
women. In fact, twice as many women die from heart disease as those who die from breast
cancer and ovarian cancers, the survival rate for women following the first heart attack
is less than for men. The Committee urged the Office on Women's Health (OWH) to undertake
a comprehensive review of the impact of heart disease on women. The Office, in
collaboration with the PHS Coordinating Committee performed a comprehensive review as well
as developed and collaborated a national education campaign to address the issues of
prevention and treatment of heart disease and stroke for women. A subcommittee of the
Coordinating Committee was formed to discuss future activities in this important area of
women's health. In response to the Cardiovascular Education Campaign Initiative, the
Office on Women's Health has developed the "For
Your Heart" web site. The "For Your Heart" web site is an
interactive module featured on the National Women's Health Information Center.
"For Your Heart" asks women questions about their
lifestyle and health behaviors, and provides messages tailored to their risk and
willingness to change. In August of 2000, the website added culturally tailored messages
to promote behavior change among African American and Hispanic women. In addition, the
Office on Women's Health has partnered with the National
Black Nurses Association (NBNA) to create, "For Your Patient".
"For Your Patient" utilizes the same tailoring features as the website in the
form of a manual for health care professionals and their patients. An informational video
highlighting cardiovascular disease experts, heart disease patients, and other public
health professionals will accompany the manual. The "For Your Patient" tool kit
will be available in Fall of 2001.
The Office on Women's Health has also developed Public
Service Announcements on African American women and cardiovascular disease featuring Nita
Booth, Miss Virginia 1998 and a heart disease patient, and Dr. C. Alicia Georges, past
president of the National Black Nurses Association. These PSAs have been distributed
nation-wide to educate African American women on their risk for heart disease.
The OWH contact person is Dr. Suzanne Haynes.
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National Bone Health
Campaign
The National Bone Health Campaign (NBHC) is a multiyear
national campaign to promote optimal bone health with behaviors that begin at age 9, and
thus reduce their risk of osteoporosis later in life. The goal is to educate and encourage
girls to establish lifelong healthy habits, especially increased calcium consumption and
physical activity to build and maintain strong bones. In addition to a focus on young
women, the campaign will target adults who influence them, including parents, teachers,
coaches, youth group leaders, and health care professionals.
To help extend the reach and impact of its messages, the NBHC
is creating a national partnership network of Federal, state, and local government allies,
nonprofit organizations, and for-profit entities. The goal of this network is to
facilitate resource and information sharing among a broad range of partner organizations
across the country. Partners will be encouraged to incorporate bone health messages and
activities into their existing programs and to share lessons learned.
This campaign is a unique public/nonprofit partnership among
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Health and Human
Service’s Office on Women’s Health (OWH) and the National Osteoporosis
Foundation. The OWH contact person is Dr.
Saralyn Mark.
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Lupus Education and Awareness Program
Lupus disproportionately affects women but has long been under-recognized. There is
a lack of public understanding of its seriousness or urgency. Lupus affects the lives of
1.4 million Americans often manifesting in women between the ages of 15-44. It is 2-3
times more prevalent in women of color. The HHS OWH recognizes the impact of this disease
in the lives of American women and has partnered with the Lupus Foundation of America to
promote awareness of lupus. Major OWH objectives include:
- stimulating the development of effective women's health
policies and programs at the national, State, and local levels;
- strengthening and sustaining a broad range of research on the
diseases and conditions that affect women;
- promoting comprehensive and culturally appropriate prevention,
diagnostic, and treatment services for women across the life span;
- stimulating public and health care professional education,
training, and information dissemination on women's health issues; and
- fostering the recruitment, retention, and promotion of women
in scientific careers and in the health professions.
The OWH has convened two scientific seminars attended by HHS
employees, friends, relatives, and collaborating partners.
The OWH contact person for the Lupus Initiative is Retta Terry.
Click here to go to our
Lupus Town Hall Meeting section.
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National
Centers of Leadership in Academic Medicine
Women currently comprise over 40% of the students entering medical school today and
are the majority in several medical specialty residencies, including pediatrics,
psychiatry, and obstetrics-gynecology. However, women are still under represented in
senior-level and leadership positions in the health and scientific professions. While
studies demonstrate that having a mentor is a positive predictor of career satisfaction
and success, there continues to be a lack of successful mentoring programs and
relationships which promote equity in medicine. Additionally, men are more likely than
women to have a mentor in medical school and more likely to be in leadership roles in
academic medicine. The development and implementation of effective mentoring programs in
academic medicine will foster equity in the representation of women in leadership
positions in the health professions.
In response to the need for a more comprehensive national
mentoring program to encourage institutional efforts in this area and to develop
strategies to overcome the institutional, economic, and organizational barriers to
mentoring programs, the Office on Women’s Health (OWH) announced in September 1998,
the establishment of four Centers of Leadership in Academic Medicine at Allegheny
University of the Health Sciences , East Carolina University School of Medicine, Meharry
Medical College and the University of California at San Diego School of Medicine. The four
Centers of Leadership in Academic Medicine are demonstration projects to promote gender
equity in medicine and leadership advancement of junior faculty.
The COL program is a response to recommendations made by the
National Task Force on Mentoring for Female Health Care Professionals, which was convened
by the OWH to lower career barriers traditionally faced by women in medicine. The task
force was made up of representatives from health professional organizations and Federal
agencies, who requested the creation of a comprehensive national program. They developed
concrete recommendations for a national commitment to the importance of mentoring for both
men and women in academic medicine. Click here to learn more about
the four Centers of Leadership in Academic Medicine, or you can read the OWH press release.
The OWH contact person is Dr. Saralyn Mark.
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National
Directory of Women’s Health Residency and Fellowship Opportunities Medicine
The DHHS Office on Women’s Health is deeply committed to improving medical education
and training for health care professionals on women’s health issues. To that end, the
Directory of Residency and Fellowship Programs in Women’s
Health was developed to foster increased public and health care professional awareness
about established programs in the expanding field of post-graduate training in
women’s health. For over 5 years, it has been provided to medical schools and upon
request to the general public. Thousands of copies have been distributed nationally and
internationally. To date, there are over 8 residencies and 19 fellowships in women’s
health. A manuscript examining the role of the Federal government in these training
programs has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Women’s
Association.
The materials contained in the Directory are based on a
national mail response survey to schools of medicine and osteopathy. If any training
programs have been unintentionally omitted from this directory, please let us know, since
we will be continually updating the Directory as new programs are established.
The Directory is managed by Dr. Saralyn Mark.
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Women’s
Health Medical School Curriculum
In the last decade, the U.S. Congress requested that medical schools be surveyed in
order to determine the extent to which women’s health issues were integrated into
curricula. In response to this directive, NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health
(ORWH) Task Force on Women in Biomedical Careers, in collaboration with representatives of
the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), other DHHS women’s offices,
and the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) began the progress for
implementing a national study to examine existing women’s health curricula in medical
schools for the purpose of determining the essential elements of a model curriculum. This
complex, collaborative process, which involved OWH and numerous other individuals and
organizations resulted in a landmark congressional report.
In this Report to Congress of the results from a national
survey of medical schools and recommendations for a core women’s health curriculum in
medical education, a major leap forward has been taken to advance medical education.
Through OWH’s collaboration with representatives of the Health Resources and Services
Administration, the NIH-ORWH, AAMC, and the American Medical Women’s Association,
significant steps were taken towards the design and implementation of a model curriculum
to help medical schools achieve an innovative, multi-disciplinary, lifespan approach to
women’s health.
The OWH contact person is Dr. Saralyn Mark.
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National
College Roundtables on Women’s Health
The Office on Women’s Health (OWH) launched the National College Roundtables
on Women’s Health at the George Washington University, Washington, DC, in October,
1996. The roundtables began with a screening of the Get Real: Straight Talk about
Women’s Health, a video discussing the health concerns of young women today
and in the future, that had been developed in collaboration with the Society for the
Advancement of Women’s Health Research. The screening was followed by roundtable
discussion, led by peer facilitators, and a question and answer panel.
These discussions give students the opportunity to ask
important questions and to air their health concerns. The goal of the Roundtables is to
help provide young women with the information they need to make smart health behavior
decisions that will help them to lead longer and healthier lives. Eleven roundtables have
been held across the country. The model has been replicated by directors of college health
centers and regional women’s health coordinators.
The National College Roundtables on Women’s Health is
coordinated by Dr. Saralyn Mark.
To request free copies of the Get
Real: Straight Talk about Women's Health video, please call the
National Women's Health Information Center, 1-800-994-9662.
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OWH Internships and Fellowships
One of the best ways we can prepare the next generation for public service is to provide
educational work opportunities for students. The Office on Women's Health (OWH) within the
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) offers quality internship and fellowship
experiences to students with specific interest in women's health issues.
The interns and fellows will assist the Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Health (Women's Health) and the other office professional staff on
activities and programs addressing such women's health issues as The National Centers of
Excellence in Women's Health and The Community Centers of Excellence, women's health and
the environment, minority women's health, violence against women, and adolescent and older
women's health issues. The scope of these activities will depend on the length of the
internship and educational background of the intern or fellow. These individuals will have
further opportunities to work with various components of the Department, with other
Federal agencies, the White House, Congress, and with private sector constituencies (such
as consumer groups and health professional organizations) to improve women's health.
Interns/fellows can gain valuable public health experience in
areas such as:
- Public and Health Care Professional Education Campaigns Health
Promotion/Disease Prevention Activities
- Violence Prevention Programs
- Adolescent and Older Women's Health Initiatives HIV and AIDS
Prevention and Education Strategies
- Minority Women's Health Initiative and Minority Media Outreach
Research and Development for the National Women's Health Information Center Website and
Clearinghouse
The contact person for OWH Internships and Fellowships is Anna Kindermann, J.D., AKindermann@OSOPHS.DHHS.GOV, or (301)
443-1383.
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Compendium on Physician Retraining
Initiatives
In 2000, The Office on Women’s Health within the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services convened the National Task Force on Re-Entry into Clinical
Practice for Health Care Professionals. The charge of this task force is to examine
critical issues surrounding re-entry for health professionals and to explore strategies
for addressing these issues.
The "Compendium on Physician
Retraining Initiatives" has been developed to provide current information on
physician retraining programs that were featured in the 1994 Pew Health Professions
Commission publication, "Physician Retraining As a Strategy to Enhance the Primary
Care Workforce: Catalogue of Retraining Initiatives". The information in this
compendium was obtained from the Pew publication and through personal communication with
the directors and staff of the listed programs. While there are many short-term continuing
medical education (CME) programs that may include re-entry components, this publication
solely includes information on long-term initiatives that are primarily devoted to
physician re-entry issues.
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The Women's and Minority Health Status Indicators Project
The DHHS Office on Women's Health has released a comprehensive Women's and Minority Health Database. It contains extensive health data from the year 2000 for the entire United States. The data is broken down by sex, age, and race/ethnicity on a state and county level for each of the ten DHHS regions. It includes mortality and incidence rates for a variety of chronic and infectious diseases, including heart disease and indicators for mental health, reproductive health, maternal health, violence and abuse, illness prevention, and access to care. This information can benefit federal, state, and local health department employees as well as other health professionals, researchers, members of the press, and consumers.
The database is available on CD-ROM at no cost. Contact the Regional Women's Health Coordinator in your region to find out how to obtain a copy. The database will be available online by the Fall of 2004. The online version of the database will include a sophisticated geographic information system (GIS) that will allow users to create complex maps of the data on the county level
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Last Updated: July 2004
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