2024 Women’s Health Awareness Conference - WNC

Download a copy of the 2024 Women’s Health Awareness Conference - WNC Satellite Site Post-Event Impact Summary (pdf)

Join us on April 13 from 8:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m.at the western North Carolina (WNC) satellite site of the Annual Women’s Health Awareness Conference. The WNC Health Policy Initiative (HPI) will host the event at the Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC), 121 Hendersonville Road, Asheville, NC 28803, in partnership with the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Asheville Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Asheville Buncombe Institute of Parity Achievement (ABIPA) Buncombe County Communications and Public Engagement, and the Buncombe County Department of Health.

This free and popular wellness conference is celebrating 10 years and has already helped more than 6,000 women and their families in North Carolina and across the United States. The conference provides health and environmental health education, health services, health resources and health advocacy skills to attending participants.

The conference also provides free health screenings for participants including mammograms for qualifying women. Note: To determine if you are eligible for a free 3D mammogram, you must register for the event and complete the mammogram eligibility questionnaire by March 15. Eligible women will be contacted to schedule an appointment.

Focusing on important women’s issues

This event welcomes all individuals of WNC. Recognizing April as minority health and health disparities awareness month, we are placing special emphasis on minority, underserved, and underrepresented women.

This year’s event features health experts presenting the most up-to-date information on topics of interest to women from various racial and ethnic backgrounds. Sessions will include presentations on chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, dementia and more. Additionally, there will be a session on the North Carolina Medicaid program including experienced counselors who will provide one-on-one assistance.

Speakers will also address societal and environmental issues including Black maternal mortality, substance abuse, domestic violence, and mental health, as well as offering coping skills through mindfulness for stress reduction, and caregiving and advocacy skills as related to community level environmental justice issues.

All participants can preregister for the conference at no cost at https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/programs/wha by March 15. Onsite registration will be available the day of the event. Preregistration is required to reserve a space for lunch.

Individuals with disabilities who need accommodation to participate in this event should contact the Office of Human Research and Community Engagement at 919-541-3852 or wha@niehs.nih.gov. TTY users should contact the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339. Requests should be made by March 15.

Community Resiliency, Environmental Action, and Collaborations for Health (REACH) Equity Study

Support women’s health programs in your area!

As a part of conference activities, participants will have the opportunity to sign up to participate in a North Carolina-wide study, the Women’s Health Awareness Community Resiliency, Environmental Action, and Collaborations for Health (REACH) Equity Study. This study seeks to understand the long-term impacts of COVID-19 on minority women and their families to assist in developing community-based programs for recovery and resiliency to improve the health of women across our state. Learn more from the WHA REACH Equity Study website: https://joinastudy.niehs.nih.gov/studies/reach

Partner Information

The WNC HPI and NIEHS would like to recognize and extend our appreciation to the WNC partners who continually help to make this event possible for women in western North Carolina:

• Asheville Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

• Buncombe County Communications and Public Engagement

• Buncombe County Department of Health and Human Services Public Health

• Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program (BCCCP)

• Buncombe County Public Health Mobile Unit

• Asheville-Buncombe Institute of Parity Achievement (ABIPA)

• UNC Asheville-UNC Gillings Master of Public Health (MPH) program

• Mountain Area Health Education Center

About

WNC Health Policy Initiative

The WNC Health Policy Initiative (WNC HPI) is co-hosted by the North Carolina Center for Health and Wellness at the University of North Carolina Asheville and the Mountain Area Health Education Center. The Initiative gathers together health policy experts, community health leaders, and content experts from across the country to discuss some of the most challenging issues related to improving the health of Western North Carolinians, and functions as a convener of and conduit for information, resources, and coalition-building between policy makers, regional public health, and healthcare leadership.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) is one of the 27 Institutes and Centers of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research with the goal of making important discoveries that improve health and save lives. NIH/NIEHS is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

NIEHS provides global leadership for innovative research that improves public health by preventing disease and disability. The NIEHS mission is to discover how the environment affect people in order to promote healthier lives.

The Women’s Health Awareness (WHA) Community Engagement Program is an innovative environmental health research, public health practice, and advocacy initiative. The main goal is to reduce environmental health disparities, build community health resiliency, and promote health equity. The program, which is celebrating 10 years, is located within the Office of Human Research and Community Engagement (OHRCE), Clinical Research Branch (CRB), Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). WHA engages women across North Carolina and beyond, with a focus on underrepresented, underserved, understudied, and underreported (U4) populations.

For additional program information and resources, visit the NIEHS Women’s Health Awareness Community Engagement Program website: https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/programs/wha. You can contact us by email WHA@niehs.nih.gov or call 919-541-3852.