Scientific area: Research Training in Obstetrics and Gynecology
Program seeks Council approval for a recurring initiative entitled the Women’s Reproductive Health Research (WRHR) Career Development Program.
This recurring initiative still needs to be stimulated because OB/GYN departments remain underrepresented in NIH research funding. For example, in FY22 they received only 0.6% of all NIH dollars supporting Research Project Grants while pediatrics and internal medicine departments received 3% and 13%, respectively. Support for the WRHR Program by NICHD is critical as no other IC supports expanded research training focused on OB/GYN clinician-investigators despite the ongoing need.
The goal of this initiative is to continue to support supervised research training of junior OB/GYN faculty to help them transition to successful, independent scientific careers, thereby strengtheningthe national capacity of investigators in reproductive research and ultimately improving women’s health. The program provides them with training as they pursue basic, translational and/or clinical research projects in any scientific area relevant to general OB/GYN or its subspecialties.
The proposed initiative aligns with the NICHD’s Strategic Plan’s Theme 2: Promoting Gynecologic, Andrologic, and Reproductive Health. It also supports the Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch’s mission to “improve women’s reproductive health by guiding and supporting gynecologic research and career development programs”.
Program Contact
Steven Kaufman
Contraception Research Branch (CRB)
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