Women of Achievement Awards

2006 Award Winners

2006 – theme – health care

Congratulations to the 2006 women of achievement recognized at the 2nd Tools of the Trade Luncheon.  This event was attended by over 200 people.  YWCA Northern Rhode Island appreciated the attendees and the underwriters.

Categories:

traditional medicine | well being for all | holistic/natural healing | nightingale | unique to women


traditional medicine: she practices or contributes to western medicine including physical and/or mental health.

Physical Health – Dr. Carole A. Jenny

Dr. Carole Jenny is a nationally and internationally recognized expert in the field of Forensic Pediatrics.  She is the director of the Child Protection Program at Hasbro Children’s Hospital and a professor of pediatrics at Brown Medical School.  Her work has been instrumental in the diagnosis and subsequent safety of children who have been victims of child abuse and neglect.

Dr. Carole Jenny

Mental Health – Mary F. Dwyer

Mary Dwyer is an accomplished psychiatric nurse.  She is the vice president of community support and nursing services at NRI Community Services, Inc.  Dwyer is president of the Rhode Island State Nurses Association and an outstanding leader in the area of behavioral healthcare services for the mentally ill.

Mary Dwyer

well being for all: she is a business leader or public official that contributes positively to health

Business Leader – Lynne A. Urbani

Lynn Urbani is a community leader who promotes health and wellness. She is the senior vice president of customer, provider, and medical services at Blue Cross &Blue Shield of Rhode Island. Urbani advocates for more coordination in healthcare, the right provider in the right place at the right time.

Lynn Urbani

Leader in the Public Sector – Mary Riley

Mary Riley is the chairwoman of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees’ health care committee. Her expertise is recognized locally and throughout the industry. Riley also co-established the London/Riley Memorial Scholarship Fund for cancer survivors treated at The Hasbro Children’s Hospital.

Mary Riley

 

holistic/natural healing: she practices or contributes to holistic/natural practices

Cleo Darcia Graham

Cleo Darcia Graham is a certified diabetes outpatient educator and holistic health counselor from the American Institute of Holistic Health &Wellness. She has a special interest in spirituality and in non-pharmaceutical strategies for alleviating chronic pain. Graham was the first African American nurse practitioner in Rhode Island.

 

nightingale: she is a samaritan, in medical research/education, or assists others

Research – Annlouise R. Assaf

Annlouise Assaf

Annlouise Assaf was one of only three women in the country chosen to direct the country’s largest study ever conducted of women’s health, the Women’s Health Initiative. Assaf continues to oversee an annual follow up of the participants. She is the senior director of global epidemiology and risk management at Pfizer, a director of community health research at Brown Center for Primary Care and Prevention at Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island, and an associate professor at the Department of Community Health at Brown University Medical School.

Assisting Others – Analee Wulfkuhle

Analee Wulfkuhle

As president and CEO of Home &Hospice Care of Rhode Island, Analee Wulfkuhle is playing a pivotal role in improving end-of-life care to individuals with serious illness and support services to their families. Extending services beyond traditional hospice at home, she has brought services into nursing homes, assisted living facilities, hospitals, group homes, and prisons. Wulfkuhle spearheads new programs to better meet the needs of Rhode Island’s diverse population.

Samaritan – Robin Rodgers

Robin Rodgers

Robin Rodgers works to bring health information, screenings, and programs to low income and minority populations throughout the state. She is the manager of the Family Van Program at Women &Infants Hospital. Focusing on quality and accessibility in health care, Rodgers is a dedicated community collaborator, grant writer, and nurse practitioner.

 

unique to women: she focuses on female health concerns

 

OB/GYN – Dr. Kathleen Fitzgerald

Dr. Kathleen Fitzgerald

Dr. Kathleen Fitzgerald is a physician specializing in primary care for women and gynecological surgery, an assistant professor for Clinical Medicine at Brown, and past president of the Rhode Island Medical Society. She is the chair of the Ob-Gyn Section Council of the American Medical Association. Dr. Fitzgerald was the first woman to serve as president of the Women &Infants Hospital Medical Staff Association and the first woman to chair District I of the American Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Heart Health (heart disease, the leading cause of death in women) – Dr. Barbara H. Roberts

Dr. Barbara Roberts

Dr. Barbara Roberts’s life work is taking care of women and their hearts. She is the director of the only cardiac center in Rhode Island devoted to women, The Women’s Cardiac Center at The Miriam Hospital. Dr. Roberts raises awareness of the differences in the female disease vs. the male disease.

Education – Dr. Kelly A. McGarry

Dr. Kelly McGarry

Dr. Kelly McGarry is a faculty member in the Division of General Internal Medicine at Brown Medical School and is establishing a women’s health concentration for the General Internal Medicine Residency. She is the education director for The National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health at Brown University and Women and Infants Hospital, evaluating and enhancing the medical school’s women’s health curriculum. Dr. McGarry has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals along with chapters in medical textbooks. She also served as the co-principal investigator for a grant from the Lesbian Health Fund.

helping hands

 

Joyce DolbecThe helping hands award is presented to a special friend who represents this year’s theme of health care. Joyce Dolbec is a health consultant at YWCA Northern Rhode Island.