2008 Gala Dinner

The 15th Annual Gala Dinner of the Society for Women’s Health Research took place April 28 at the Ritz-Carlton in Washington, D.C. The event was attended by more than 600 individuals, including many prominent SWHR supporters from government, industry and allied organizations.

The theme for this year’s Gala and many SWHR activities during 2008 is “What a Difference an ‘X’ Makes,” focusing on biological sex differences in health. The highlight of the evening was a video of the same name that examines health differences between the sexes in a funny and informative way.  Featuring interviews with experts and people on the street, the video discusses the brain, heart, smoking and lung cancer, sexually transmitted infections, sexual dysfunction, and clinical trials research.  The video shows the gap between public perceptions and the realities of biological health differences.

View the video on SWHR's YouTube page. The video was produced by Spectrum Science Communications and made possible by a generous contribution from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.

Following opening remarks by Phyllis Greenberger, M.S.W., SWHR president & CEO, Cathy Kerzner, senior vice president and general manager of Women’s Health Care, at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, and Renee Selman, worldwide president of ETHICON Women's Health & Urology, a division of ETHICON, Inc., and a Johnson & Johnson Company, welcomed attendees to the Gala. Wyeth and the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies served as the Gala’s corporate dinner chairs.

As part of the Gala’s short program following dinner, Karyn Frick, Ph.D., an associate professor of behavioral neuroscience in the Department of Psychology at Yale University, was awarded the third annual Society for Women’s Health Research Medtronic Prize for Scientific Contributions to Women’s Health for her work in the field of sex differences research and women’s health. Nanette Wenger, M.D., SWHR board chair, and Susan Alpert, Ph.D., senior vice president, chief quality and regulatory officer, of Medtronic, Inc., presented the award to Frick.