Minority Women's Health

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Minority Women's Health Panel of Experts

The Office on Women's Health (OWH) established the Minority Women's Health Panel of Experts in response to its 1997 conference, "Bridging the Gap: Enhancing Partnerships to Improve Minority Women's Health." The panel is composed of physicians, clinicians, community advocates, and academicians working in communities and health settings around the country that serve racially and ethnically diverse women. The five major ethnic groups (African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, and Hispanic) are represented among the panel members, who have expertise in a variety of disciplines. The major focus of the panel is to ensure that the ethnic minority focus is incorporated throughout OWH programs, policies and initiatives by:

1. Providing input to and serving as a resource for the United States Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office on Women's Health, in support of the OWH's goals to improve the health of women and in the development of minority women's health initiatives;
2. Providing input to the Department/Secretarial initiatives, targeted to enhance the health of minority women in the United States.

Minority Partnerships and Sponsorships

It has been the goal of OWH to provide support to minority and underserved women's-focused conferences, programs/projects, seminars, and workshops. In relation to the OWH mission to foster partnerships to eliminate health disparities, this support mechanism works to strengthen the capacity of communities to promotion Women's health across the lifespan. Supporting minority programs/projects allows the OWH to have a presence at the community level, and fosters partnerships to deliver health promotion messages in a culturally competent manner. Support (funding) is granted through professional services contracts and competitive awards to community- and faith-based organizations, minority-serving institutions of higher education, and small health education non-profit organizations.

2007 Minority Women's Health Summit

August 23-26, 2007, Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC
Theme: Addressing Disparities, Acknowledging Resilience, Providing Actions for Success
Purpose: This conference is the third conference (1997, 2004) that addresses the unique health issues experienced by women who reflect disparities in the US population. The goal of this conference is to focus on the unique and often unrecognized threats to health status experienced by women of color, by:

1. Building on the knowledge gained in the previous conferences and uncovering the distinct health issues that women face daily as they carry out their activities for themselves and their families;
2. Acknowledging the powerful women who are community leaders and survivors of disparate conditions; and
3. Building on the successful models of care and the innate sense of survival that exists within all populations.

Current as of June 2007