The Institute for Women’s Health Research at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine has created the Illinois Women’s Health Registry and invites community women interested in advancing women’s health to participate. The Registry was developed to encourage more researchers to study women’s health issues and to provide women living in Illinois the opportunity to participate in university-sponsored research studies that advance women’s health knowledge.
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According to Teresa K. Woodruff, PhD, principal investigator for the Registry and executive director of the Institute, “Sex and gender play a significant role in health beyond the reproductive system. Scientists now realize that sex differences influence virtually every body system. The Registry will help researchers include more women in their research so we can better understand how and why illnesses develop in women, how to best treat diseases in women, and what women can do to prevent illness. I believe that women throughout Illinois are very excited to be part of the Registry and help us find the answers.”The Registry provides a friendly portal for women interested in being part of innovative research projects, and also allows biostatisticians a mechanism to evaluate the health status and trends of Illinois women over time. All women, regardless of health status, age 18 years and older, are eligible to participate in the free Registry. Women who join the Registry will be asked to complete a detailed health history questionnaire that takes about 20 minutes and will be asked to update it annually. The questionnaire can be accessed electronically or a paper version can be mailed and completed at home. The Registry only contains information that the woman supplies and the data is stored on a secure computer server. If an enrollee matches an approved research study that is seeking women of a particular cohort, they will be contacted by the Registry staff to determine if they are interested in participating. Even though Northwestern University is sponsoring the Registry, enrollees do not need to be a patient or affiliated with Northwestern University. Registry participants will receive periodic newsletters featuring articles and news about women’s health and important Registry information. For additional details about the Illinois Women’s Health Registry at Northwestern University, please call 312.503.1308 (or 800.984.IWHR) for a brochure or visit whr.northwestern.edu. |
