Women's Health Research Program

The Women’s Health Research Program (WHRP) leverages the expertise of existing College physicians and scientists, hospital partners, and affiliated community organizations, as well as talented individuals we intend to recruit to the College, to accomplish defined objectives that range from conception to end of life: improving reproductive and fetal health, developing fertility research, post-menopausal women’s health issues and development of a world class gynecologic cancer research program. Change for the better in each of these areas can only be achieved through research into the root cause of a problem.

To support our Women's Health Research program, please visit our donations page.

Background: The lifelong health of women provides the major portal to improving family, community, and global health. Prevention, the ultimate goal for a long and healthy life, is a dynamic process that must be initiated early, during intrauterine development of the fetus, and sustained throughout life.

Vision: Establish a state-of-the-art Women’s Health Research Program that has a profound impact on the health of women throughout our community.

Definition of Women’s Health: The Woman’s Health Research Program is a multi-disciplinary effort seeking to translate research findings into better clinical practices and outcomes.  We share the IOM’s definition of women’s health: encompassing health conditions that are specific to women; are more common or more serious in women; have distinct causes or manifestations in women; have different outcomes or treatments in women; or have high morbidity or mortality in women (IOM Women’s Health Research Brief Report, September 2010). 

Goals:

• Improving women’s health through the development of community partnerships, research and public health interventions.
• Developing the region’s leading maternal and fetal health program.
• Addressing the major health care challenges women face as they age, such as osteoporosis, increased cardiovascular disease risk, post-menopausal symptoms, urinary incontinence and depression.
• Creating a world-class gynecological cancer research program.
• Helping couples facing fertility issues.

Community:
 

1)      Learning the needs and barriers for health care for women of Milwaukee --meeting with community leaders, key clinicians and researchers at MCW, administrators of area clinics, Planned Parenthood, and VA, identifying community partners, defining community, and establishing connections.

2)      Beginning community-based health education –establishing core lectures for presentation in community-such as clinical trials, HPV vaccine, and genetic susceptibility to cancer.

3)      Establishing a gynecologic oncology patient and family support group --3rd Wednesday of each month at the Cancer Center.

4)      Creating community partnership – health activities.
 

Research:
 

The WHRP meets research goals by providing infrastructure, services and resources for:

1)      Obtaining grants

o   Identifying grant opportunities

o   Designing research projects

o   Grant writing

2)      Funding research

o   Request for Proposals (RFP)

o   Grants awarded

3)      Conducting research

o   Research projects

o   Research support staff

4)      Disseminating results

o   Publications

o Seminars

Faculty:

1)      Recruiting Vice Chair of Research.

2)      Building on existing Ob/Gyn and MCW faculty assets and interests in Women's Health Research.

3)      Identifying areas for new faculty recruitment.

4)      Providing training to faculty in community and translational research, grant writing and publications.

5)      Promoting/fostering training of scientists in women’s health research.

6)      Mentoring resident research.

Summary:

Securing the lifelong health of women is critical to preserving family, community, and global health. Locating and growing the Women’s Health Research Program at the College, the research anchor for the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center and the only academic medical institution in Wisconsin’s largest population center, will provide an important healthcare resource for women in southeastern Wisconsin.

The Women’s Health Research Program will play an active role in promoting excellence in medical care for women and in conducting research that will improve women’s health. Philanthropy and investments by the College and its hospital partners to support the initiative will be invested in program development, which includes the recruitment of senior clinical and research faculty, equipment purchases, and funding of research projects.
 

If you are interested in being a part of the Women's Health Research Program by donating, please see our donations page.