VCU to host regional conference focusing on women's health

By Michael Ford
University News Services

RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Commonwealth University’s Institute for Women’s Health and Office of Continuing Medical Education will sponsor a two-day conference focusing on women’s health issues, aimed at physicians, nurses and nurse practitioners.

"Women’s Health 2001: Clinical Insights for the Practitioner" is a multidisciplinary conference featuring faculty experts from VCU and institutions including Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Harvard Medical School in Boston, and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The program set for March 23-24 at the Jefferson Hotel, 101 W. Franklin St., is designed to update health-care professionals on women’s health topics, including breast health, cardiovascular disease, contraception, hormone therapies, perimenopause, osteoporosis and mental health.

"Historically, women’s health was fragmented into body parts, mostly the reproductive organs," said VCU’s Wendy Klein, M.D., program chair and associate professor of internal medicine and obstetrics and gynecology. "Today, women’s health is approached in a more integrated fashion, looking at the whole woman."

In addition to five large sessions, the conference also will include more than 20 roundtable discussions. In each, up to 10 participants will be able to discuss advancements in a specific field with a faculty expert.

And this year, the conference will offer an optional hands-on skill workshop for practicing physicians. During simulated interactions with surrogate patients, participants will learn how to refine their examination techniques and interpersonal communication skills. During a review session afterwards the clinicians will receive individualized computer-based feedback. The March 24 session will be held at VCU’S Ambulatory Care Center, 417 N.11th St.

"The simulated settings are realistic, right down to the real-world, 20-minute sessions with surrogate patients. They’ll go in with a chart, get a patient history and discuss treatment options," said Klein, associate director of the VCU Institute for Women’s Health and director of the women’s health track in internal medicine.

Founded in 1999, the VCU Institute for Women’s Health is designed to enhance education and training in women’s health for undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate students, faculty and staff. Along with improving clinical care, the institute promotes research and interdisciplinary collaboration in women’s health education and seeks to develop community, state and national educational programs in women’s health.

The Carnegie foundation for the Advancement of Teaching lists VCU among the top research universities in the country. Each year, VCU faculty members attract $120 million in sponsored research funding.