Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, ASB1-3, Boston, Massachusetts (USA) Robert L. Barbieri, M.D. graduated from Yale College (1973) and Harvard Medical School (1977). He is certified in Internal Medicine (1982), Endocrinology and Metabolism (1983), Obstetrics and Gynecology (1987) and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (1988). Currently he is Chairman of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Kate Macy Ladd Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology at Harvard Medical School. Dr Barbieri is the program director for the integrated Brigham and Women’s Hospital-Massachusetts General Hospital obstetrics and gynecology residency training program. Dr. Barbieri is the past President of the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO), and the past President of the APGO Medical Education Foundation. He has served on the Board of Directors of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine and as the Chairperson of the National Institutes of Health, Reproductive Biology Study Section. Dr. Barbieri is a contributing author to over 300 medical publications. He is an editor of 4 textbooks in reproductive endocrinology and gynecology: UpToDate in Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health, Kistner’s Gynecology and Women’s Health, Yen and Jaffe’s Reproductive Endocrinology and Scientific American Medicine: Gynecology in Primary Care. He is a co-author of 6 Steps to Increased Fertility, a Harvard Medical School book, published by Simon and Schuster. His current research interests include issues related to infertility, including the treatment of PCOS and the identification of predictors of successful IVF treatment.Read More

23 February 2005 Dear Dr. Luthra, I have the honour to invite you to address the community of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) associated with the Department of Public Information (DPI) on Thursday, 7 April 2005, at the weekly Briefing organized by the NGO Section of DPI. The topic of the Briefing will be “International World Health Day”. Our well-informed NGO representatives would be interested in hearing from you on how your organization is working with the United Nations and with governments to promote maternal health and early childhood care. Other invited speakers include H.E. Chief Arthur Mbanefo, Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations and Dr. Jack Chow, World Health Organization, Assistant Director-General for HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria. We respectfully ask that you give a presentation of approximately seven-to-ten minutes so that the remaining time can be devoted to a question-and-answer period. The weekly DPI/NGO Briefings are attended by an average of 200 representatives of national and intemationa1 NGOs that work with the United Nations. The Briefing will take place in the Dog Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium from 10:30 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. I hope you will be able to join us on 7 April 2005. Yours sincerely, Paul Hoeffel Chief NGO Section Department of Public InformationRead More

President: Dr. Rita Luthra President, The Women’s Health & Education Center (WHEC) The Women’s Health & Education Organization (WHEO, Inc.) E-mail: rita@womenshealthsection.com Secretary: Dr. Nicole H. Boudreau The Women’s Health & Education Center (WHEC) The Women’s Health & Education Organization (WHEO, Inc.) 1180 Beacon Street 2C, Brookline, MA 02446 USA Tel: 617-232-0440 Fax: 617-562-7021 E-mail: NHBoudreauMD@aol.com Treasurer: Robert S. Lyons The Women’s Health and Education Center (WHEC) The Women’s Health and Education Organization, Inc. (WHEO, Inc.) 11 West Elm Street West Townsend, MA 01474 Telephone: 508-361-3721 Fax: 508-525-4506 E-Mail:rslyons73156@hotmail.com Dr. Robert L. Barbieri Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, ASB1-3, 75 Francis Street, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115 USA Telephone: 617-732-4265 Fax: 617-277-1440 E-mail: rbarbieri@partners.org Dr. Howard L. Minkoff Chairman, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Maimonides Medical Center Distinguished Professor SUNY Health Science Center 967 48th Street Brooklyn, NY 11219 (USA) Tel: 718-283-7973 or 718-283-3000 Fax: 718-283-8468 E-mail: hminkoff@maimonidesmed.org WHEC By-LawsRead More

Dr. Rita Luthra President Women’s Health & Education Center (WHEC) NGO in Special Consultative Status with ECOSOC of the United Nations Rita@womenshealthsection.com Upasana Chauhan UN Women Member & International Advisor UN Representative, Communications and Public Relations New York, NY (USA) upasana.c20@gmail.ocm Alternative Contact Person for Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (Hosted by World Health Organization) Dr. Nicole H. Boudreau Assistant Clinical Professor Tufts University School of Medicine 1180 Beacon Street 2C Brookline, MA 02446, USA Tel: 617-232-0440 Fax: 617-652-7021 e-mail: NHBoudreauMD@aol.com Who We Are? What We Do? Why Gender And Health?      Read More

The purpose of Women’s Health and Education Center (WHEC) is to support and improve the educational opportunities and general health of women and particularly women of the developing countries. Women’s health and status is a very complex and challenging issue for the developing and industrialized countries both. Women face enormous obstacles — prejudice, ostracism, domestic violence, poverty, hunger and virtually no access to medical care and life saving medicines. The Women’s Health and Education Center is dedicated to women’s health and well being worldwide. Its web site, WomensHealthSection.com is for educational purposes, between USA and developing countries of: Mutual Benefit and Mutual Respect. We support and help projects / programs in women’s health, education and research. We believe: On this path effort never goes to waste, and there is no failure. Each year more than 500, 000 women die in pregnancy or childbirth and less than 10 million children die before their fifth birthday- nearly 40% of these in the first month of life. But evidence shows that at least 6 million of these lives can be saved each year with proven, cost-effective interventions. Our Vision: A world where all women and children receive the care they need to live healthy, productive lives. Our Goal: To invest in, deliver and advance maternal, newborn and child health, and thereby put 50% of the 60 high-burden countries “on track” to achieve MDGs 4 and 5 in 5 years. WHAT WE DO? Women’s Health and Education Center (WHEC) advocates gender equality in health and education for women and girls around the world. WHEC brings attention to the ways in which biological and socio-cultural factors affect the health of women and men, boys and girls. WHEC aims to increase knowledge and strengthen the health sector response by gathering evidence, strengthening capacity and engaging in advocacy on how gender and gender inequality affect health. WHEC focuses on the ways that gender, as a social construction, affects the health of both men and women. But we also realize that gender inequality has a higher toll on women’s health due to the discrimination they face in nearly every culture. Gender inequality exacerbates the harmful effects of poverty and lack of education on women’s health, hampering the ability of millions of women worldwide to access health care and achieve the best possible level of health. WomensHealthSection.com educates health care professionals about conditions that are exclusive to women, more prevalent in women, or are diagnosed or treated differently in women versus men. This publication presents unbiased, comprehensive, concise, and clinically relevant review articles and practical sections. The articles are peer reviewed to maintain the highest quality and to verify clinical relevance, medical accuracy, and clarity of presentation. The most insightful and thought-provoking articles are now available in a single portal. All WHEC Practice Bulletins are reviewed 18 to 24 months after publication and are revised, reaffirmed, or withdrawn. WHY GENDER AND HEALTH? Both gender differences and gender inequalities can give rise to inequities between men and women in health status and access to health care. For example: A woman cannot receive needed health services because norms in her community prevent her from travelling alone to a clinic. A teenage boy dies in an accident because of trying to live up to peers’ expectations that young men should be “bold” risk-takers. A married woman contracts HIV because societal standards encourage her husband’s promiscuity while simultaneously preventing her from insisting on condom use. A country’s lung cancer mortality rate for men far outstrips the corresponding rate for women because smoking is considered an attractive marker of masculinity, while it is frowned upon as unfeminine in women. In each of these cases, gender norms and values, and resulting behaviors, are negatively affecting health. In fact, the gender picture in a given time and place can be one of the major obstacles – sometimes the single most important obstacle – standing between men and women and the achievement of well-being. WHEC has produced a series of information pages on the relevance of gender to several specific health problems. Reading them over is a good way to begin to get a sense of the ways gender and health interact. WomensHealthSection.com is a global, Web-enabled platform for multiple forms of collaboration. This platform enables individuals, groups, companies, and universities anywhere in the world to collaborate — for the purposes of innovation, education, research and to advance the causes peace, health and development. We invite you to tap into this platform, and finally, the governance to get the best out of this platform.Read More

Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science Los Angeles, CA 90059 Tel: (323) 357-3424 Fax: (323) 357-3477 e-mail: kacheng@cdrewu.edu Karen G. Cheng, Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Charles Drew University (CDU) in Los Angeles, USA. For nearly six years, she has been working on international health projects, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. Her research focuses on culturally appropriate uses of information and communications technology (ICT) to improve delivery of health information and health services in low-income countries. Dr. Cheng’s studies evaluate the acceptability and impact of handheld computers, mobile phones, websites, and other ICT in order to understand the social and cultural barriers to accepting ICT in healthcare settings in low-income countries. Dr. Cheng has worked with the Rwanda Defense Forces for the last three years to build their capacity to provide medical and psychosocial services to Rwandan soldiers living with HIV or AIDS. This includes developing an electronic system for patient records. The next step of the project will be to expand services to families of soldiers. In addition, she has worked with the Angolan Armed Forces to develop and experimentally test a culturally-appropriate HIV prevention intervention. The main aims of the intervention were education and skills-building. Dr. Cheng received her Ph.D. in social psychology from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2002. Her dissertation focused on how interpersonal relationships affect cultural identity.Read More

25 October 2004 Dear Dr Luthra, Thank you for your letter of 15 October 2004 and congratulations to the Center on becoming associated with the UN-DPI. I would be pleased to share information about the Woman’s Health and Education Center with relevant WHO departments, however, it will also be helpful to have the following information as well: a copy of the Center’s constitution or equivalent document; copies of its membership lists; list of its officers; copies of its annual reports for the past three years and audited accounts; copies of any evaluations of its projects and/or research reports produced by the Center; if produced, a copy of its publications/media catalogue. I take this opportunity to thank you for your interest in the work of WHO. Yours sincerely, Ms. J.S. Matsumoto External Relations Officer Office of the Civil Society InitiativeRead More

Dr. Robert M. Silver Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Chief, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine University of Utah Health Sciences Center (UUHSC) 30 North 1900 East SOM 2B200 Salt Lake City, UT 84132 (USA) Tel: 801-585-5156 Fax: 801-585-2594 E-mail: robert.silver@hsc.utah.edu Dr. Bradley J. Monk, FACS, FACOG Professor Division of Gynecologic Oncology Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Creighton University School of Medicine at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center, a member of Catholic Healthcare West 500 W. Thomas Road, Suite 660 Phoenix, AZ 85013 (USA) Tel #: (602) 406-6000 Fax #: 602-406-9921 Email: Bradley.monk@chw.edu Dr. John J. Sciarra, MD, PhD Thomas J. Watkins Professor Feinberg School of Medicine Northwestern University Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology 680 North Lake Shore Drive, Suite 1015 Chicago, Illinois 60611-8702 (USA) Tel: 312-695-5107 Fax: 312-908-8777 e-mail: jsciarra@northwestern.edu Dr. Laurence B. McCullough, Ph.D Associate Director for Education Professor of Medicine and Medical Ethics Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Baylor College of Medicine One Baylor Plaza Houston, TX 77030, (USA) Tel: 713 798 3505 Fax: 713 798 5678 e-mail: mccullou@bcm.tmc.edu Dr. Frank A. Chervenak Given Foundation Professor and Chairman Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology New York Weill Cornell Medical Center 525 East 68th St., Suite M727 New York, NY, 10021 (USA) Tel: 212-746-3045 Fax: 212-746-8500 e-mail: FAC2001@med.cornell.edu Dr. Philip M. Sarrel Emeritus Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Psychiatry Yale University School of Medicine 161 Center Road Woodbridge, CT. 06525 (USA) Tel: (203) 785-4002 Fax: (203) 785-1883 e-mail: Philip.sarrel@yale.edu Dr. Robert L. Barbieri Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, ASB1-3 Brigham and Women’s Hospital 75 Francis Street Boston, Massachusetts, 02115 USA Telephone: 617-732-4265 Fax: 617-277-1440 e-mail: rbarbieri@partners.org Dr. Yinka Oyelese, MD, MRCOG Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School 2nd Floor, Clinical Academic Building 125 Paterson St New Brunswick NJ 08901, USA Tel: 732-235-7628 Fax: 732-235-6627 e-mail: yinkamd@aol.com Dr. Edward E. Wallach Professor of Gynecology & Obstetrics Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions 600 North Wolfe Street, Phipps Building # 201 Baltimore, MD 21287-1201 (USA) Tel: (410) 955-7800 Fax: (410) 955-9138 e-mail: ewallach@jhmi.edu Dr. Bhavani Shankar Kodali Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School Attending Anesthesiologist Brigham and Women’s Hospital Boston, MA U.S.A. Telephone: 617-732-8221 Fax: 617-277-2192 e-mail: bkodali@PARTNERS.ORG Dr. Neeraj Kohli, MD, MBA Director, Division of Urogynecology Brigham and Women’s Hospital Assistant Professor Harvard Medical School Boston, Massachusetts, USA e-mail: nkohli@partners.org Dr. Gil Levy, MD Director, Division of Female Pelvic Surgery and Reconstructive Surgery Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Maimonides Medical Center Assistant Professor SUNY Health Science Center 967 48th Street Brooklyn, NY 11219 (USA) Tel: 718-283-8846 Fax: 718-283-8468 e-mail: glevy@maimonidesmed.org Dr. Howard L. Minkoff Chairman, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Maimonides Medical Center Distinguished Professor SUNY Health Science Center 967 48th Street Brooklyn, NY 11219 (USA) Tel: 718-283-7973 or 718-283-3000 Fax: 718-283-8468 e-mail: hminkoff@maimonidesmed.org Dr. Baha M. Sibai Professor and Chairman Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology University of Cincinnati 231 Albert Sabin Way Cincinnati, Ohio 45267 (USA) Tel: 513-558-8448 Fax: 513-558-6138 e-mail: baha.sibai@uc.edu Dr. Neena Agarwala Assistant Professor Advanced Laparoscopic Surgery Minimally Invasive Urogyn & Pelvic Surgery University of Nebraska Medical Center Omaha, NE 68198-3255 (USA) Tel: 402-559-8133 Fax: 402-559-5015 e-mail: nagarwala@unmc.edu Dr. Frank H. Boehm Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Vice Chairman Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Vanderbilt University Medical Center North B1100 Nashville, TN (USA) 37232-2519 Office telephone: (615) 343-5227 Fax: (615) 343-8881 e-mail: frank.boehm@vanderbilt.edu Dr. Maya M. Hammoud Associate Professor & Chief Technology Officer Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Associate Professor, Department of Medical Education University of Michigan Medical School L4000 Women’s Hospital 1500 E. Medical Center Dr. Ann Arbor, MI, 48109 Phone: 734-936-3110 Fax: 734-936-7722 e-mail: immaya@umich.edu Guest Faculty – Canada Dr. Peter von Dadelszen, MBChB, DPhil University of British Columbia Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology 2H30-4500 Oak Street Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 (Canada) Tel: +1-604-875-2424 ext 3054 Fax: +1-604-875-2725 e-mail: pvd@cw.bc.ca Guest Faculty – Italy Dr. Mario Preti Deputy Director, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology University of Turin St. Anna Hospital Via Ventiniglia 3 10126 Turin, Italy Tel: +39.011.3131982 Fax: +39.011.5622901 e-mail: mario.preti@tin.it Dr. Erich Cosmi Director of Prenatal Diagnosis and Fetal Therapy Unit Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Department of Gynecological Science and Human Reproduction, Section of Maternal and Fetal Medicine University of Padua School of Medicine via Giustiniani N 3, Padua, 35128, Italy Phone: +39-339-8146745 Fax: +39-049-8211842 e-mail: ecosmi@hotmail.com Guest Faculty – Ireland Dr. John R. Higgins Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Head of College of Medicine and Health University College Cork Cork University Maternity Hospital Wilton, Cork, Ireland Tel: +353 214920748 Fax: +353 214205025 e-mail: J.Higgins@ucc.ie Guest Faculty – Spain Dr. Maria M. Morales Suárez-Varela Professor Titular de Universidad Area de Medicina Preventiva y Salud Pública Universitat de Valencia Avd. Vicente Andrés Estellés s/n 46100 – Burjasot SPAIN Tel/Fax: 34-963544951 e-mail: maria.m.morales@uv.es Guest Faculty – United Kingdom Dr. David Richmond President Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) 27 Sussex Place Regents Park London NW1 4RG U.K. T: +44 20 7772 6250 E: president@rcog.org.uk W: www.rcog.org.uk Dr. Luciano E. Mignini Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Birmingham Women’s Health Care NHS Trust B15 2TG, Birmingham U.K. T: +0121 472 1377 Fax: 0121 627 2667 E: L.Mignini@bham.ac.ukRead More

The Women’s Health and Education Center had the honor to launch this e-learning project (WomensHealthSection.com) in association with the Department of Public Information of the United Nations on 24 October 2002. We are embarking on a new era in medicine and healthcare. Our mission is to make evidence-based medicine available to national and international audience. To reach the global community and to serve national and international needs, the text is available in six languages: Arabic, Chinese, (US) English, French, Russian, and Spanish. The syllabus of our project is designed to stress common, everyday health-care issues in women’s health. Most of all, however, we hope that the contents will motivate future research that will further enhance the understanding of reproductive health. Education is the best gift in life both to give and to receive. Gratitude is expressed to Mr. Paul Hoeffel, Chief, NGO Section Department of Public Information of the United Nations for his friendship, support and guidance. He believes passionately in the fundamental wisdom in the opinions of the healthcare providers from all over the world, an idea that he pursued with integrity and energy, shedding light on personal, spiritual side of human life. To him I owe my greatest debt as the inspiration for this e-learning project. I have been very fortunate to work with Sol Oca, Information Officer, NGO Section Department of Public Information of the United Nations. We are grateful to her for her continuous support to this project. I am grateful to all my friends and colleagues from various respectable teaching hospitals and universities from all over the USA and other countries, who are involved with me in this project. Their friendship and support has made this web-learning project a great success. We look forward to work with anyone who is interested in improving maternal and child health. I have been very fortunate to work with Victoria A. White, CEO, eclecTechs and her extraordinary team on this e-learning project. Personally, as I am sure in almost universally the case, writing a journal turns out to be a much more challenging task than was initially anticipated. There is a vast gulf between having thoughts and ideas and the challenge of getting them organized, written on paper, and then relentlessly edited and shaped into coherent whole. I still remember the very first day when I discussed this project with Victoria; she asked me: What would your web-site like to do? I hope this brings happiness and goodwill in the world. We hope to make a difference. Thanks again Rita Luthra, MDRead More

Treasurer The Women’s Health and Education Center (WHEC) The Women’s Health and Education Organization, Inc. (WHEO, Inc.) 11 West Elm Street West Townsend, MA 01474 Telephone: 508-361-3721 Fax: 508-525-4506 E-Mail:rslyons73156@hotmail.com Robert S. Lyons is Senior Vice President of Wealth Management with Merrill Lynch where he has been employed since 1998. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, Mr. Lyons served as Executive Director of the University of Massachusetts Foundation for 10 years. He has more than thirty years of progressive experience in investments, finance, and accounting. Mr. Lyons is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor (CRPC), has an undergraduate degree in accounting, and an MBA from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He participates in numerous community activities, and resides in Townsend, MA and Harwich, MA with his wife and three children. Robert has been financial adviser for The Women’s Health and Education Center (WHEC) and The Women’s Health and Education Organization, Inc. (WHEO, Inc.) since 2008.Read More