DURHAM, N.C., March 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The eighth annual Women’s Health Awareness (WHA) Conference will be held virtually Saturday, April 9, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. This free and popular wellness conference has helped more than 4,000 women and their families in North Carolina and beyond by offering educational seminars and health resources. Due to the COVID pandemic, the event will be virtual.

Register at www.niehs.nih.gov/WHAconference

Register today for the April 9th event!

This year’s event features renowned health experts presenting the most up-to-date information on topics of interest to communities of color. Sessions will include discussion of chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, inflammation, autoimmune disorders, and dementia. Speakers also will address societal and environmental issues including Black maternal mortality, reproductive health, substance abuse, domestic violence, and mental health, as well as offering coping skills for caregiving. To promote community and health resiliency for Latinx and Hispanic communities, WHA continues to provide Spanish-language resources and bilingual sessions. Environmental health topics include COVID and its lasting complications, disaster preparedness, and systemic and environmental racism.

WHA addresses environmental health disparities in rural and urban communities of color. Every year, WHA expands its reach. This year, organizers will pilot satellite sites to reach rural communities with limited internet access. This will allow additional communities to participate in the conference from their local counties to increase healthy equity. Organizers have partnered with public health and community-based organizations to share WHA in convenient locations.

The Office of Human Research and Community Engagement, led by Joan Packenham, Ph.D., at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)/National Institutes of Health (NIH), is the lead sponsor of this event. Co-sponsors include Durham Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and the Department of Public Health at North Carolina Central University.

For more information on the WHA conference, visit www.niehs.nih.gov/womenshealthawareness. Individuals with disabilities who need accommodation to participate in this event should contact the Office of Human Research and Community Engagement at 984-287-4414 or whad@niehs.nih.gov. TTY users should contact the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339. Requests should be made at least 5 business days in advance of the event.