Women’s Unique Health Needs and the SDGs, a call to action co-hosted by the ECHAlliance and the Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) was a program during the Science Summit United Nations General Assembly (UNGA79) this fall. This program took place in New York City, NY, USA on September 24, 2024 from 9:00am-12:30pm (EDT).
Learn more about the Science Summit United Nations General Assembly (UNGA79).
The event discussed key developments and opportunities to advance women’s health care and research, with a focus on addressing disparities; the role of women in health care decision-making; access to preventive care; and representation in the women’s health workforce.
Read the event agenda here.
Read more about the event on the SWHR blog: SWHR to Host Women’s Health Event at the United Nations Science Summit this Fall.
This sessions discussed key developments and opportunities to advance women’s health care and research, with a focus on:
This women’s health program included:
Learn more about the closed roundtables taking place after the open session, Role of FemTech in the Women’s Health Care Ecosystem Roundtable and Strengthening the Maternal Health Workforce Roundtable.
Speakers are listed in alphabetical order and include speakers for open session in the morning and closed roundtables in the afternoon. Please read the event agenda here to see who is speaking on each topic during the morning sessions. This agenda is subject to change.
Nicole Althaus is a digital health product innovation leader, marketing strategist and passionate advocate for improving patient care. With over 25 years of proven success traveling throughout the perspective of the patient, payer, provider, and device maker, she has designed and launched several data-driven personalized product solutions with a focus on patient
engagement, care delivery, clinical decision support, population health, mobile health and telehealth.
Utilizing best practices from pragmatic marketing, human-centered design and strategic marketing principles, Nicole has devoted much of her career to help tackle closing gaps in the healthcare system and creating better consumer experiences that inform, motivate and empower better health. She has worked in leadership roles with several US-based and international focused organizations ranging from startup to Fortune 5.
Nicole currently consults with digital health firms, providers, patient advocacy, and rural community health organizations to deliver health product design, go-to-market strategy, strategic communications and consumer experience design
Dr. Irene O. Aninye is the Chief Science Officer for the Society for Women’s Health Research, a national nonprofit dedicated to advancing women’s health through science, policy, and education. Aninye steers SWHR’s portfolio of scientific programs to increase awareness and investment in research on biological sex differences and health conditions that disproportionately or uniquely affect women. She convenes expert working groups and meetings to identify strategies that address persistent gaps in women’s health care and research, translating recommendations into science-based and patient-centered policy solutions. Dr. Aninye has led the development of white papers, health care roadmaps, patient toolkits, clinical education materials, and calls to action for women’s cardiovascular health, autoimmune diseases, menopause, Alzheimer’s disease, HPV, and endometriosis, among other areas. Prior to SWHR, Aninye worked at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, specializing in research capacity building and evaluating STEM research and training programs for universities and funding agencies. With a PhD in Molecular and Integrative Physiology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Dr. Aninye’s research background is in endocrinology and metabolism – investigating sex steroid hormones and their receptor-mediated actions in development, reproduction, and disease. She has a passion to diversify the face of STEM and involvement of underrepresented groups in the sciences, providing scientific and leadership training across all career stages and serving on advisory boards for the National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society, National Health Council, and World Economic Forum.
Michele Barry is the Drs. Ben and A. Jess Shenson Professor of Medicine and Tropical Diseases at Stanford University, where she directs the Center for Innovation in Global Health and serves as Senior Associate Dean for Global Health.
A leading advocate for women’s leadership in medicine and global health, she founded the Gates-funded international nonprofit WomenLift Health. She’s an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, Council on Foreign Relations, and The American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Chair Emerita of the Board of Directors for the Consortium of Universities for Global Health, and past President of the American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene.
She has recently written on the exclusion of women climate scientists from COP meetings and leadership roles, among many other topics
Bio coming soon
Dr. Aisha K. Brooks is a Captain in the U.S. Public Health Service and serves as the senior health policy administrator for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Health Service Corps. Dr. Brooks served as an Assistant Surgeon General and the 12th Chief Nurse Officer in the U.S. Public Health Service from October 2019 to September 2023. In this capacity, Dr. Brooks provided guidance and advice to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Surgeon General, and the nation’s nursing community on prevention, public health, health systems development, and the role of the nursing workforce in achieving health and wellness in the country.
Dr. Brooks is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and the Academy of Diversity Leaders in Nursing and a consummate advocate for nurses, the nursing profession, and public health.
Dr. Ru Cheng leads a team that supports the development and adoption of high-quality health products that address the needs of women and girls in low- and middle-income countries. The Women’s Health Innovations team also serves as a unifying voice on women’s health, collaborating with other foundation teams and external partners to direct more funding and attention to R&D for women’s health.
A board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist, Ru joined the foundation in 2023 after more than 15 years in the biopharmaceutical industry, where she held roles of increasing responsibility in the clinical development of drugs and devices for women’s health at Johnson & Johnson, Bayer, and Pfizer. Earlier, Ru was an assistant professor at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, where she served as a clinician, educator, and researcher and oversaw the gynecological ultrasound unit.
Ru earned a BA in chemistry from Duke University and an MD from The Ohio State University College of Medicine. She completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the Medical College of Pennsylvania (now Drexel University College of Medicine) and served as chief resident.
Janine Austin Clayton, M.D., FARVO, was appointed Associate Director for Research on Women’s Health and Director of the Office of Research on Women’s Health at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2012. Dr. Clayton has strengthened NIH support for research on diseases, disorders, and conditions that affect women. She is the architect of the NIH policy requiring scientists to consider sex as a biological variable across the research spectrum, a part of NIH’s initiative to enhance reproducibility, rigor, and transparency. As co-chair of the NIH Working Group on Women in Biomedical Careers with the NIH Director Dr. Clayton also leads NIH’s efforts to advance women in science careers. In 2021, Dr. Clayton was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
Dr. Clayton was previously the Deputy Clinical Director of the National Eye Institute (NEI). A board-certified ophthalmologist, Dr. Clayton’s research interests include autoimmune ocular diseases and the role of sex and gender in health and disease. Dr. Clayton has a particular interest in ocular surface disease and discovered a novel form of disease associated with premature ovarian insufficiency that affects young women, setting the stage for her commitment to rigorous, thoughtful exploration of the role of sex and gender in health and disease. She is the author of more than 120 scientific publications, journal articles, and book chapters. Her clinical research has ranged from randomized controlled trials of novel therapies for immune-mediated ocular diseases to studies on the development of digital imaging techniques for the anterior segment.
Dr. Clayton, a native Washingtonian, received her undergraduate degree with honors from Johns Hopkins University and her medical degree from Howard University College of Medicine. She completed a residency in ophthalmology at the Medical College of Virginia. Dr. Clayton completed fellowship training in cornea and external disease at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins Hospital and in uveitis and ocular immunology at NEI.
Dr. Clayton has received several awards and has been recognized as a leader by her peers. She received the Senior Achievement Award from the Board of Trustees of the American Academy of Ophthalmology in 2008, was selected as a 2010 Silver Fellow by the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, and won the European Uveitis Patient Interest Association Clinical Uveitis Research Award in 2010. In 2015, she was awarded the American Medical Women’s Association Lila A. Wallis Women’s Health Award and the Wenger Award for Excellence in Public Service. Dr. Clayton was granted the Bernadine Healy Award for Visionary Leadership in Women’s Health in 2016. She was also selected as an honoree for the Woman’s Day Red Dress Awards and the American Medical Association’s Dr. Nathan Davis Awards for Outstanding Government Service in 2017.
Bio coming soon
Bio coming soon
Anuradha Gupta is the President of Global Immunization at the Sabin Vaccine Institute. Ms. Gupta has spearheaded successful global initiatives to improve the health of women and children and harness the full power of vaccines.
Prior to Sabin, Ms. Gupta spent several years at Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, as its deputy CEO, where she pioneered the concept of zero-dose children.
Before her time at Gavi, Anuradha served as Mission Director of the National Health Mission of India, where she ran the largest public health program in the world and played a leading role in the country’s efforts to eradicate polio, reduce maternal and child mortality, and revitalize primary health care.
Anuradha holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Wollongong in Australia.
Born and raised in her own constituency of Swansea East, Carolyn grew up with a keen interest in politics. After gaining a degree in Social Policy from Swansea University, Carolyn continued to work within her community, setting up two centres for disaffected youths. This was followed by roles as a Regional Director for a capacity building not-for-profit organisation and then a Regional Manager for a children’s cancer charity. Carolyn then worked for the former Member of Parliament for Swansea East, Siân James.
On 7 May 2015, she was first elected as the constituencies Member of Parliament and was reelected in both the 2017 and 2019 elections. In April 2018 she became the first Deputy Leader of Welsh Labour. Carolyn has undertaken many frontbench roles including Shadow Home Office Minister, Shadow Women and Equalities Minister and Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition.
She now sits as a Backbencher and Chairs the All Party Parliamentary Groups on Gambling Related Harm, Beauty & Wellbeing and Menopause. She also sits on the Women and Equalities and Home Affairs Select Committees and co-chairs the Government’s Menopause Taskforce.
Carolyn has run a series of successful campaigns including lowering the stakes on fixed odd betting terminals (FOBTs) and establishing a children’s funerals for bereaved families in memory of her own son Martin who died in a road accident in 1989 when he was just 8 years old. Her most recent campaign to support women experiencing symptoms of the menopause has gained widespread support across Parliament and beyond.
In constituency, Carolyn’s most notable projects focus on the elimination of food poverty and holiday hunger. Her “Everyone Deserves…” campaign ensures that families who might otherwise go without are supported with food hampers at Christmas and Easter time and lunch clubs during the summer holidays.
Carolyn continues to live in her own constituency with her family.
Mitzi Krockover, M.D., is the Founder and CEO of Woman Centered, LLC and the host and producer of the Beyond the Paper Gown podcast, which inspires and informs women to achieve their optimal health. Additionally, she is a Managing Director at Golden Seeds, an angel investment organization that focuses on funding early-stage companies led by women; she co-leads the Health Sector Committee. Dr. Krockover has served as the founding Medical Director of the Iris Cantor-UCLA Women’s Health Center and as Vice President of Women’s Health at Humana Inc. Dr. Krockover also serves on the boards of the Institute for Mental Health Research, the Black Women’s Health Imperative and Springboard’s Women’s Health Innovation Council.
Dr Eleanor Ann Nwadinobi, MBBS, EMA, is President of the Medical Women’s International Association. She is also Special Advisor to the Nigeria Safeguarding Resource and Support hub and Co founder of the Every woman treaty, a coalition advocating for a global binding norm to end violence against women.
An independent gender, health, women’s rights, and women, peace, and security expert, her career has spanned working as an anaesthetist in the UK, with ECOWAS on child trafficking, United Nations on girls’ education,HIV/AIDS and as lead researcher on gender-based violence for the World Bank and African Union as team leader for experts who drafted the stabilisation strategy for countries affected by Boko Haram.
Eleanor has presented numerous papers, has several publications and honoured with several awards.
Bleddyn is an experienced commercial and international healthcare lawyer with over 30 years’ experience advising on outsourcings, privatisations, complex contracting and projects. In healthcare he has advised on healthcare regulations, commissioning, procurement and contracting for healthcare services, partnerships, alliances and collaborations in the health and care sectors in the UK, Europe, Middle East and the US.
He has unique experience for a private sector lawyer having spent almost four years seconded to the Commercial Directorate of the UK Department of Health as General Counsel in the early 2000’s. Bleddyn has advised Health Ministers and through his secondment he has a detailed understanding of the NHS and the UK health sector.
Bleddyn is Deputy Chair of the European Connected Health Alliance and Chair of the Digital Health Society. Both these organisations are helping to transform health and care services internationally. Bleddyn Chairs the Digital Working Group of All Policies for a Healthy Europe, a think tank set up by Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, Philips and Randstad based in Brussels. He has a special interest in Digital Health, health data and Medtech.
Bio coming soon.
Dr. Rachel Sturke joined the Fogarty International Center in 2006 and currently serves as Deputy Director and Senior Scientist in the Division of International Science Policy, Planning, and Evaluation and the Center for Global Health Studies at the Fogarty International Center at NIH. In this role, she oversees a portfolio of global implementation science projects and the program evaluation portfolio for Fogarty.
Dr. Sturke’s work in implementation science includes a focus on building research capacity in implementation science in low- and middle-income countries and using innovative platforms to bring implementation scientists together with decision-makers and program implementers from LMICs. Dr. Sturke has worked extensively in India, Ecuador, Peru, and sub-Saharan Africa. She is an active member of the NIH Dissemination and Implementation Science Working Group, leads a trans-NIH working group focusing on building capacity for global implementation science, and has co-chaired the global track for the NIH-sponsored Annual Conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation for several years.
Dr. Sturke obtained her PhD in population, reproductive, and women’s health from Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health with a focus on gender, violence and HIV in South India. She received both a Masters in Public Health and a Masters in International Affairs from Columbia University. Prior to her doctoral training, she spent two years as a research analyst with Fogarty’s Division of International Epidemiology and Population Health.
Bio coming soon
ECHAlliance is the Global Connector for Digital Health connecting 78 Countries and 4.4 billion people. As a member organisation, ECHAlliance brings its global community together in a network of ecosystems that match need and solution, break down silos, transform healthcare, transfer best practices and lessons learned and create economic opportunities. We connect the healthcare dots across the globe. To learn more about ECHAlliance, view our Capability Statement and our 2023 Annual Report.
The Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) is a national nonprofit and thought leader advancing women’s health through science, policy, and education while promoting research on sex differences to optimize women’s health. Founded in 1990, SWHR is making women’s health mainstream by addressing unmet needs and research gaps in women’s health. The success of SWHR’s science and policy programs is grounded in our ability to convene and leverage the knowledge of our interdisciplinary networks – diverse groups of researchers, clinicians, patient advocates, policy professionals, and other health care leaders with expertise related to specific diseases, conditions, or health topics that either exclusively, differently, or disproportionately affect women. Thanks to SWHR’s efforts, women are now routinely included in most major medical research studies in the United States and more scientists are considering sex as a biological variable in their research. Visit www.swhr.org for more information.
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