Do you know what year the first iPhone came out? Or when the Titanic sank? How about the year of the first heart bypass?
Two Women’s Health Research at Yale undergraduate fellows took to the streets to increase public literacy with a little fun and a lot of knowledge about the history of women’s health.
Haleigh Larson and Dhikshitha Balaji, both Class of ’18, served as “gameshow hosts” on campus and the New Haven Green. They also tested the efficacy of the center’s previous health literacy videos designed to increase knowledge and change attitudes and behavior. They also published their own writing, including this op-ed piece on the logistics and ethics of gene editing and the center’s first blog, offering a student’s perspective on the past, present, and future of women’s health research. Sue Hong, Class of ’20, has now begun to publish her own takes on these topics, including hand-drawn illustrations.
It wasn’t until 1993 that the United States passed a law requiring the inclusion of women in clinical studies supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the world’s largest single funder of biomedical research. It wasn’t until 2016 that the NIH required the inclusion of females in basic laboratory studies necessary to form the basis for human trials.
This historical lack of female subjects in medical research created a gap in knowledge. WHRY pioneers the effort to narrow this gap.
An interdisciplinary research center within Yale School of Medicine, WHRY launches new research on sex and gender. By partnering with community and medical professionals, WHRY shares accurate information and empowers people to make informed decisions about their health. The center asserts a national voice to inform public policy. In addition, by training the next generation of researchers to study the influence of sex and gender, WHRY is shaping the future of scientific research.
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For questions, please contact Rick Harrison, Communications Officer at rick.harrison@yale.edu or 203-764-6610.