On Thursday May 2nd, 2024, RID Program Leader Dr. Deborah Money presented to the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Health in Ottawa, Ontario during their 113th meeting, which was focused on women’s health. She spoke on the importance of women’s heath research, impacts that Canadian research has had in the field of women’s health, the positive advancements in healthcare that can be achieved when women and pregnancy-focused research is prioritized and multiple recommendations on how to improve women’s health research in Canada. Dr. Money was invited to speak as an official witness during this session by the committee, and was among three other prominent Canadian womens’ health researchers who were also invited. During her presentation, Dr. Money used anecdotes of three key research studies/areas she has been involved in during her career, including the first placebo-controlled trial of azidothymidine (the earliest successfully-developed antiretroviral medication) in pregnant women living with HIV, research on HPV vaccination and HPV DNA screening to prevent cervical cancer, and the CANCOVID-Preg study to determine the risk of adverse maternal and infant outcomes in COVID positive pregnancies in Canada, to showcase the aforementioned themes. Following the presentation session, Dr. Money and the three other researchers present participated in a Q&A session for the MPs of the committee. During this session, Dr. Money answered multiple questions and advocated for the implementation of HPV self-screening across Canada, increases in funding to support clinician scientists in women’s health, and the need for easier sharing of health data between provinces and on a national scale. For more information click here and to access a recording of the entire session click here!
