Megan McHenry, MD, assistant professor of pediatrics at Indiana University (IU) School of Medicine, was elected to join the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Section on Global Health (SOGH) Executive Committee beginning November 1st.
The mission of the SOGH is to “promote and lead efforts to help children throughout the world attain optimal physical, mental and social health and well-being. The section will prepare and empower its members to make meaningful contributions to global child health through high quality education and training, effective partnerships and collaborations, and staunch advocacy for the world's children,” according to the AAP website.
Dr. McHenry will work with other executive committee members to lead the educational efforts of the section, including educational content at the AAP national conference and exhibition, a webinar series, publications and other initiatives. The section has more than 1000 members invested in global child health across the world.
“I’m honored to have the opportunity to contribute to the Section on Global Health’s vision to build a world in which all children are safe, secure and well-nourished, with access to quality healthcare, education, and the opportunity to develop to their full potential,” said Dr. McHenry. “This is why I became a pediatrician and is at the heart of my work in both Indiana and Kenya. I look forward to learning with and from my colleagues.”
Dr. McHenry is a global health affiliated faculty member with the IU Center for Global Health (IUCGH) and is the principal investigator a five-year R01 research grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) entitled “Predicting neurodevelopmental risk in children born to mothers living with HIV in Kenya.”
Additionally, she is working with a collaborative team from IU and AMPATH Kenya through a global health reciprocal innovation demonstration grant entitled “Caregiver interventions to improve the quality-of-life and social support for families caring for children with autism in Kenya and Indiana.” The grant from the Indiana CTSI and IUCGH supports the design of a functional core curriculum to be implemented within a group-based setting with families of children with autism in western Kenya and Indiana and a pilot evaluation of its impact on family quality of life and parental distress.
As the director of Global Health Education in the Department of Pediatrics, Dr. McHenry also educates residents and students on topics related to global child health education, research methodologies, and research ethics.
“It is with great pleasure that I formally congratulate several new (and promoted) SOGH executive committee leaders. It is exciting to welcome new leaders who will further shape the section in this evolving and exciting time in global health,” said section Chair Patrick T. McGann, MD, MS, FAAP.
More information about the AAP SOGH can be found @aapglobalhealth on Twitter or via email.
