ABOUT US
Welcome!
The Sex and Gender Health Collaborative (SGHC) was established to bring a sex and gender perspective into medical and health professionals’ education and into clinical practice to ensure an accurate and comprehensive understanding and sensitivity that will improve medical care for all.
Each of us, without exception, has a sex and a gender. Our health is influenced by both sex (biology) and gender (sociocultural factors). Gender includes our own behaviors, our gendered expression, our gendered roles and the gendered expectations in the world around us. To fully meet an individual’s health care needs, we need to ensure that sex and gender are integrated into research, health professions education, and clinical practice. For women, we need to broaden our approach to clinical care and shift from a focus on reproductive concerns to a perspective that encompasses the entirety of women’s bodies. In both men’s and women’s healthcare, clinicians need to consider both biological (sex) and sociocultural (gender) factors, as well as the interaction between the two.
Vision
To integrate sex and gender knowledge into medical and other health professions education and practice to improve healthcare for all.
Mission
The SGHC will fulfill our vision by:
- Providing a digital clearinghouse of evidence-based sex and gender educational resources.
- Increasing awareness that sex and gender matters for individuals, clinical outcomes, and in health systems.
- Promoting sex and gender related collaborations among diverse groups and individuals
Committee Initiatives
The Sex and Gender Health Collaborative has a variety of initiatives. To learn more or join forces to move these important efforts forward, contact us.
Advocacy
The advocacy subcommittee is conducting an outreach campaign to medical journal editors and textbook publishers to gain commitments for the need to report research data by sex and gender, and to commit to the SAGER guidelines. They also work to form partnerships to advocate for the incorporation of sex and gender content into curricula and with certifying bodies to include sex and gender-specific care into assessment examinations. To join, contact Chair of Advocacy.
Curriculum Development
The curriculum subcommittee will develop curricula materials to be incorporated into medical and health education programs. We see this as a key method of facilitating the adoption of sex and gender differences throughout medical education and integrated into training so it becomes a consistent consideration in clinical practice. Our work will reflect the 4 Tenets to be identified at the 2020 Sex and Gender Health Education Summit. To join, email the Chair of Curriculum.
Scholarship
Members on the scholarship subcommittee author original journal articles in order to highlight sex and gender issues, research findings, and the role that sex and gender play in medicine and healthcare. To see past journal publications, go to our Publications Page. To participate in this work, email the Scholarship Chair.
Professional Education
The professional education subcommittee works to create sex- and gender-specific teaching tools and learning modules for educators and faculty development. This consists of Task forces focused on specific diseases, webinars, peer review for sex and gender journals, and a speaker’s bureau (coming soon). To join, contact Chair of Professional Education
Communications
The communications subcommittee promotes the work of the committee, aiming to raise the work and visibility of the Sex & Gender Health Collaborative as a key initiative for AMWA, and increase awareness of sex and gender-specific concepts. We look to increase active membership, engage with like-minded organizations, and promote SGHC through newsletters, website content, and social media. To help, email Chair of Communications.
Student and House Officer Involvement
Residents, medical students, and premedical undergrads are encouraged to become involved in SGHC. We feel that your contributions are very critical to our mission—building a grassroots movement to educate schools, curriculum committees, and faculty—and to begin incorporating sex and gender concepts into training to assure that sex and gender differences gained from research are translated to bedside care. In the words of Marjorie Jenkins, MD: “There is no research discovery, no matter how amazing, that will save a patient’s life unless it traverses a learning environment.”
To become involved, email:
In addition to the ongoing committee of the Amerian Medical Women’s Association, the Sex & Gender Health Collaborative was established through the generosity of two other founding partners: on, the American College of Women’s Health Physicians, and the Society for Women’s Health Research. Continuing support has also been provided by the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women’s Health.
