Office of Women’s Health

The mission and work of the Health Resources and Services Office of Women’s Health (HRSA OWH) is guided by the overarching theme, “Healthy Women Build Healthy Communities.” OWH is organizationally housed within the HRSA/ Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).  The Office coordinates women’s health-related activities across all HRSA Bureaus and Offices.  This cross-cutting role strengthens HRSA’s programmatic focus to reduce sex and gender-based disparities, and ensure that women from all walks of life receive comprehensive, culturally competent, quality health care.  OWH fulfills this role through activities related to five broad functions:

• Serving in a leadership capacity on women’s health and sex/gender-specific issues and policy for HRSA senior managers and with other agencies in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS);
• Coordinating and supporting sex/gender-specific disease prevention and health promotion activities within HRSA and HHS;
• Serving as the HRSA liaison with other Federal and non-Federal individuals and organizations working on women’s health and sex/gender-specific health related issues;
• Providing mentorship experiences for scholars and interns and encouraging staff development opportunities;
• Supporting educational and information dissemination efforts on topics related to sex/gender specific health issues.

In all of its work, HRSA OWH promotes an integrated approach to women’s health across the lifespan.  Such an approach takes into account the physical, mental, socio-economic, cultural, and spiritual aspects of women’s lives, as well as the multiple personal and professional roles that women play in their families and communities. 

Selected cross-cutting, women’s health-related activities supported by HRSA OWH include:

• National Women’s Health Week – (the week each year in May following Mother’s Day) – an annual event to recognize the importance of improving the health and well-being of women across the country.  Families, communities, businesses, government, health organizations and other groups work together to focus on healthy lifestyles and simple action steps to improve physical and mental health and prevent disease.
• Bright Futures for Women’s Health and Wellness – an initiative to plan, develop, implement, and evaluate a variety of evidence-based, culturally competent consumer, healthcare provider, and community products that will increase women’s awareness and use of preventive health services.
• Women’s Health USA Databook– an annual reference publication summarizing key statistics on health indicators by sex, race/ethnicity, and age, developed in partnership with the MCHB’s Division of Healthy Start and Perinatal Services and the Office of Data and Program Development.

Resources

The HRSA Women’s Health Web site, www.hrsa.gov/womenshealth, is a gateway to information about projects in the Office of Women’s Health.

Women’s health-related publications are also available from the HRSA Information Center. To see a complete list of offerings, visit www.ask.hrsa.gov or call toll-free, (888) ASK-HRSA (275-4772).