ORWH Social and Behavioral Scientist Administrator Elizabeth Barr, Ph.D., and colleagues recently published “Impact of Dedicated Women’s Outreach Workers (WOWs) on Recruitment of Women in ACTG Clinical Studies” in HIV Research & Clinical Practice. This article addresses the gap in women’s participation in AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) research and reports on a 1-year pilot study of WOWs conducted by Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and the Ponce De Leon Center. Researchers worked with personnel in Newark, New Jersey, and Atlanta, Georgia, to contact women living with HIV and/or hepatitis B or C and encourage them to register for future clinical trials. The researchers report on lessons learned that could inform future efforts to engage women living with HIV in clinical research. 

Additionally, ORWH Special Volunteer Pamela Stratton, M.D., and colleagues recently published “Gynaecological and Reproductive Health of Women with Telomere Biology Disorders” in the British Journal of Haematology. This article discusses how chromosomal mutations known as telomere biology disorders, particularly one such disorder known as dyskeratosis congenita, affect women’s reproductive health, fertility, and pregnancy outcomes.