Women in Global Health Research Initiative

2020 Scientific Conference

Keynote Addresses

Soumya Swaminathan, MD; World Health Organization

Dr Soumya Swaminathan is the WHO Chief Scientist and was previously the WHO's Deputy Director-General for Programmes. A pediatrician from India and a globally recognized researcher on tuberculosis and HIV, she brings with her 30 years of experience in clinical care and research and has worked throughout her career to translate research into impactful programs.

Dr Swaminathan was Secretary to the Government of India for Health Research and Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research from 2015 to 2017. From 2009 to 2011, she also served as Coordinator of the UNICEF/UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases in Geneva.

Dr. Swaminathan has published more than 350 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters. She is an elected Foreign Fellow of the US National Academy of Medicine and a Fellow of all three science academies in India. She has previously been on several WHO and global advisory bodies and committees, including the WHO Expert Panel to Review Global Strategy and Plan of Action on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property, the Strategic and Technical Advisory Group of the Global TB Department at WHO, and most recently was Co-Chair of the Lancet Commission on TB.

Panel Discussions

Women's Global Health Research, Activism, and Impact

Moderator:

Miriam Mutebi, MBChB, MMed Surg, MS

Consultant Breast Surgical Oncologist

Assistant Professor of Surgery, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya

Panelists:

Sarita Shah, MD

Associate Director for Science, International Research & Programs Branch, Division of Tuberculosis Intervention – NCHHSTP, CDC

Marleen Temmerman, MD, PhD

Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Aga Khan University Hospital, Director, Center of Excellence in Women and Child Health, Aga Khan University, Founding Director, International Centre of Reproductive Health (ICRH) Ghent University, Belgium

Rebecca Cooney, PhD

North American Executive Director, the Lancet

Sindy Escobar-Alvarez, PhD

Senior Program Officer for Medical Research, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

Training and Mentorship of Female Leaders in LMICs

Moderator:

Jyoti Mathad, MD, MSc

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Obstetrics, and Gynecology, Center for Global Health, Weill Cornell Medicine

Panelists:

Judith Spitz, PhD

Founding Program Director, Initiative for Women in Technology and Entrepreneurship in New York (WiTNY), Cornell Tech

Nancy Glass, PhD, MPH, MS, RN

Associate Director, Center for Global Health

Professor of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University

Ana Mocumbi, MD, PhD, FESC

Associate Professor of Medicine, Eduardo Mondlane University

Izukanji Sikazwe, MBChB, MPH

CEO, Center for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ)

Please find the full agenda for the 2020 Scientific Conference here.