SWHR Input on NICHD Strategic Plan for FY2020-2024

SWHR sent a letter to Dr. Diana W. Bianchi, Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), providing official comment on the NICHD strategic plan for fiscal years (FYs) 2020-2024. SWHR’s comments included overall support for the NICHD’s goals of better understanding human development. SWHR further encouraged consideration of biological sex as a variable in research design to better understand how these differences affect human development.

Other comments emphasized a need for including diverse populations within pregnancy and reproductive health research, as well as the importance of approaching these studies from a patient-centered perspective. Finally, SWHR called for continued emphasis on medical therapeutic and device safety. In doing this, they recommended that NICHD implement recommendations from the Task Force on Research Specific to Pregnant Women and Lactating Women (PRGLAC) to ensure continued improvements to the safety of this specific subpopulation of women.

READ SWHR’S FULL COMMENTS HERE