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Office of Research on Women's Health

Putting science to work for the health of women

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  • Women's Health Research
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    Women's Health Research

    Women's health research is an essential part of the NIH research agenda. The field includes the study of health throughout the lifespan and across the spectrum of scientific investigations.

    • What Is Women's Health Research?
    • Funded Research and Programs
      • Administrative Supplements (Sex and Gender)
      • Funding Opportunities Announcements
      • Biennial Reports
    • Advancing NIH Research on the Health of Women: A 2021 Conference
    • Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Web Portal
      • Welcome
      • What Are Maternal Morbidity and Mortality?
      • Maternal Health Across NIH
      • Ongoing Studies
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      • Information & Resources
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    • Interdisciplinary Research
      • Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health (BIRCWH)
      • Specialized Centers of Research Excellence (SCORE) on Sex Differences
      • U3 Interdisciplinary Research
    • Clinical Research & Trials
      • NIH Inclusion Policies
      • Women of Color Health Information Collection
    • Resources
      • Legacy of Better Science, Better Health for Women Presentation
      • Women's Health Research Slideshow
      • More Information on Women's Health
      • Raising the Bar: Improving the Health of Women in the United States
      • Intimate Partner Violence, Screening, and Counseling Research Symposium Report
      • NIH Inclusion Outreach Toolkit: How to Engage, Recruit, and Retain Women in Clinical Research
      • Polycystic Ovary/Ovarian Syndrome Booklet
    • Women, Science, and the Impact of COVID-19
  • Sex & Gender
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    Sex & Gender

    Sex/gender influence health and disease, and considering these factors in research informs the development of prevention strategies and treatment interventions for both women and men.

    • What are Sex & Gender?
    • Methods and Techniques for Integrating Sex into Research
    • E-Learning Courses on Sex & Gender
    • NIH Policy on Sex as a Biological Variable (SABV)
    • Infographic: How Sex/Gender Influence Health & Disease
    • Specialized Centers of Research Excellence (SCORE) on Sex Differences
    • Administrative Supplements for Research on Sex and Gender Differences (SAGE)
    • Sex, Gender, and Intersectionality (SG&I) Innovations Collaborative
  • In the Spotlight
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    In the Spotlight

    Women’s health research and efforts to advance the careers of women in biomedicine are being performed across the NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices, as well as in other agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the private sector. This section of the ORWH website highlights some of these efforts, which are currently having, or have the potential to have, a substantial impact on the health of women and the advancement of women in the biomedical field.

    • Top Stories
      • ORWH Hosts next “Diverse Voices” Quarterly Lecture on Cancer Disparities
      • ORWH Announces Two Science Policy Scholar Travel Awards for Junior Investigators to Present at the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Organization for the Study of Sex Differences
      • New Funding Opportunity Supports Administrative Supplements for Research on the Health of U3 Women Populations
      • New Issue of In Focus Explores Oral Health
      • New Pilot Program Will Mentor and Advance Women's Health
      • New Report: Perspectives of Advancing NIH Research to Inform and Improve the Health of Women
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  • Science Policy
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    Science Policy

    The NIH Sex as a Biological Variable and Inclusion policies help to ensure that women and female biology in general are factored into every stage of research.

    • NIH Inclusion Policies
      • Common Definitions in NIH Inclusion Policies
      • Including Women and Minorities in Clinical Research Background
    • NIH Policy on Sex as a Biological Variable (SABV)
      • Questions & Answers
  • Career Development & Education
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    Career Development & Education

    ORWH develops and supports opportunities to recruit, retain, and advance women in biomedical careers, and programs that support both women and men in women's health and sex differences research careers.

    • Career Development Programs and Projects
    • Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health (BIRCWH)
      • Funded Programs and Principal Investigators
    • Re-Entry into Biomedical Research Careers
    • NIH Working Group on Women in Biomedical Careers
    • Women of Color Research Network
    • E-Learning
      • Bench to Bedside: Integrating Sex and Gender to Improve Human Health Course
      • Sex as a Biological Variable: A Primer
      • SABV Primer Supplement
      • SABV Primer: Train the Trainer
      • Introduction to Sex and Gender: Core Concepts for Health-Related Research
    • Research Continuity and Retention Supplements
    • Prize Competition for Enhancing Faculty Gender Diversity
    • Videocasts & Webinars
    • Educational Resources
  • About
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    About

    ORWH is the first Public Health Service office dedicated specifically to promoting women's health research within and beyond the NIH scientific community.

    • Mission & History
      • Federal Partners Involved in Clinical Trials Initiative
      • Legislative Mandate
      • ORWH 30th Anniversary
    • Advisory Committees
      • Advisory Committee on Research on Women's Health
      • Coordinating Committee on Research on Women's Health
    • Trans-NIH Strategic Plan for Women's Health Research
      • Advancing Science for the Health of Women: 2019-2023
      • A Vision for 2020 for Women's Health Research
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    • Annual Vivian W. Pinn Symposium
    • Ending Structural Racism
  • NIH Institutes & HHS Agencies
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    NIH Institutes & HHS Agencies

    ORWH works in partnership with NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices (ICOs), as well as other agencies and offices within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to advance the health of women. ORWH highlights the work of  these organizations in improving women’s health and serves as the focal point for women's health research at the NIH.

    • NIH
      • CC
      • CIT
      • CSR
      • FIC
      • NCATS
      • NCCIH
      • NCI
      • NEI
      • NHGRI
      • NHLBI
      • NIA
      • NIAAA
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      • NICHD
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      • NIDCD
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      • NIGMS
      • NIMH
      • NHLBI
      • NIMHD
      • NINDS
      • NINR
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      • OD
      • OD/OAR
      • OD/OBSSR
      • OD/ODP
      • OD/ODS
      • OD/ORIP
      • OD/ORWH
      • OD/OSC
    • OTHER HHS AGENCIES
      • AHRQ
      • ATSDR
      • CDC
      • FDA
      • HHS
      • HRSA
      • IHS
      • NIH
      • NIH (EN ESPAÑOL)
      • SAMHSA

ORWH stands by our commitment to advancing research for the health of women and our vision of a world in which all women receive evidence-based care tailored to their health needs. We encourage all women, allies, and care providers to visit the Department of Health and Human Services' ReproductiveRights.gov for more information.

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Director's Messages: Research

Director's Messages by Tag:
About ORWH,  Research, Career Development, Clinical Research & Trials, Research, Advisory Committees, Dry Eye, Women's History Month, women in biomedical careers, women in science, Pearls of Wisdom video series
2018
  • Celebrating Women’s History Month
    During March, we celebrate Women's History Month to recognize the extraordinary achievements of women. At the Office of Research on Women's Health, we are acknowledging the contributions of women scientists and clinicians...
  • Celebrating American Heart Month
    Celebrating American Heart Month
2017
  • Women in Medicine Month: NIH Leaders (Blog 3 of 3)
    Dr. Clayton highlights NIH Leaders
  • Women in Medicine Month: Distinguished Deans (Blog 2 of 3)
    Dr. Clayton highlights distinguished deans at medical schools
  • Women in Medicine Month: Taking Stock (Blog 1 of 3)
    Dr. Clayton discusses women in science
  • One Year Into the NIH SABV Policy, Sex and Gender in Science Gain Steam
    Dr. Clayton discusses growing interest in potential role of sex and gender in health and science.
  • We Need All Hands on Deck for Women's Heart Health
    Dr. Clayton discusses the importance of women's heart health.
2016
  • NCI Launches a Landmark Study on Breast Cancer in African-American Women
    Dr. Clayton interviews Dr. Damali Martin about NCI's Breast Cancer Genetic Study in African-Ancestry Populations.
  • Domestic Violence Awareness: A Task for Everybody, Everywhere
    Dr. Clayton discusses the domestic violence problem and NIH's research on violence against women.
  • An ORWH Concern: Women’s Health Around the World
    Dr. Clayton discusses why global health is an important part of ORWH's work.
  • Using Science to Achieve Workforce Diversity
    Dr. Clayton discusses the investments that NIH and others have been making to investigate why women are underrepresented in the scientific workforce.
  • Minority Health: A Milestone on the Road to Precision Medicine
    ORWH, NIH, and FDA offer resources to help investigators recruit the most diverse populations for their clinical studies.
2015
  • Happy 25th Birthday, ORWH!
    In celebration of ORWH's 25th anniversary, 200 people gathered for a special hearing on Capitol Hill. Dr. Clayton reflects on the office's founding and its future outlook.
  • Keeping Scientists in Science: NIH Re-Issues Re-Entry Supplements Funding Opportunity
    An NIH-wide program provides up to 3 years of funding for candidates with a doctoral degree who left active research and want to return. Eighty-one percent of participants have secured a scientific research position.
  • Considering Sex as a Biological Variable: In the NIH Guide
    A notice this week announces momentum toward new instructions for applicants on enhancing reproducibility through rigor and transparency by addressing sex as a biological variable.
  • Listening to Our Stakeholders On Considering Sex as a Biological Variable
    Dr. Clayton and NIH Deputy Director for Extramural Research Sally J. Rockey, Ph.D., give an update on planning for a new policy on sex as a biological variable in preclinical research.
2014
  • Back to Basics: New Publishing Guidelines to Enhance Reproducibility and Relevance
    This week, Science and Nature report on new principles and guidelines in reporting preclinical research that were developed at a meeting organized in conjunction with NIH.
  • Stepping Stones to the Future
    Dr. Clayton; James Anderson, M.D., Ph.D.; and Elizabeth Wilder, Ph.D., announce $10 million in administrative supplement grants so that a sex/gender lens can be added to currently funded research projects.
  • A Conversation Worth Having
    NIH releases a Request for Information seeking input from the research community and others on key questions about the consideration of sex in NIH-funded studies.
  • Answering Questions on Considering Males and Females in Preclinical Research
    A Q & A guide is now available to answer questions about new NIH policies being developed to expand the consideration of sex in biomedical research with animals and cells.
  • Women Can Soar in STEM
    An update from the White House Summit on Working Families highlights findings from NIH-funded research examining why women may not progress to their full potential in the scientific workplace.
  • Questions Worth Asking of Science on Mother’s Day — and Every Day
    Highlighted on the occasion of National Women's Health Week, the Women's Health Research in Review slideshow catalogues advancements in women's health in recent decades.
  • Filling the Gaps: NIH to Enact New Policies to Address Sex Differences
    Nature publishes an announcement from NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins and Dr. Clayton about a plan requiring grant applicants to address sex-based considerations and analyses in preclinical research.
  • Science Gets a Second Chance
    Research grant supplements issued through a new ORWH program are giving scientists the opportunity to strengthen their research by adding a sex/gender lens to their currently funded research.
  • Sex Is in the News… And It Matters
    CBS' 60 Minutes and the Huffington Post take up the topic of sex differences in disease and responses to medication, shining a light on the importance of women's health research.
  • The Three Rs of Good Science
    Rigor, reproducibility, and relevance drive good science, and ORWH is shining a light on one area where research sometimes comes up short: accounting for differences between males and females.
2013
  • Smoking: It's Never too Late to Quit But Women May Find It's Harder
    Smoking affects women and men differently, and these differences influence the ability to quit. Research on sex differences in health is advancing understanding of aspects such as differing responses to nicotine.
  • Focus on May: Healthy Vision Month
    Two-thirds of people worldwide who are visually impaired or blind are female. This National Women's Health Week, learn more about differences between men and women in eye health.
  • Better Health for All Americans – April is Minority Health Month
    Ethnicity and race play a significant role in the nation's health. As part of its efforts to support the best research toward improving the health of all Americans, ORWH and other institutes make science-based health information available to women of color.
  • Blazing Trails – March is Women’s History Month
    Today, NIH-funded research digs deeper to explain why women and men have different health needs, thanks to the efforts of the first woman director of an NIH Institute, the first woman director of NIH, and female lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
  • Studying Sex Differences Provides New Insights into Disease
    ORWH advances priorities for research on women's health and sex and gender differences laid out in the NIH Strategic Plan for Women's Health Research. Pursuing these priorities has resulted in progress toward understanding how men's and women's health differs.
  • Women’s Hearts Truly Are Unique: Celebrate Your Heart This February, National Heart Health Awareness Month
    Researchers are looking into many aspects of heart disease that are unique in women at the level of cells, structures such as blood vessels, and behavior.
  • Snapshot of Women’s Health in America
    A new report documents a gap between the health of Americans and that of their peers in other high-income nations, with American women ranking near the bottom. What can be done?
  • Playing in the Sandbox: Advancing Women in Science
    There has been substantial progress on providing opportunities and support for women in the scientific workforce, but it is equally important to find ways to accelerate change. There is still much to do.

Director’s Messages

  • Building on Our Accomplishments in 2022 to Continue Promoting Women’s Health in 2023

    January 31, 2023

  • Improving Women’s Health: An Integral Component to Advancing Population Health

    November 30, 2022

  • The Multifront Fight Against Breast Cancer: Research to Advance Innovative Screening and Treatment and Confront Health Disparities

    October 17, 2022

  • Gender as a Social and Cultural Variable and Health

    August 23, 2022

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Phone: 301-402-1770

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