Wendy Bennett, MD, MPH, along with Kelly Bower, MD, MSN/MPH, BS, RN, co-leads a team dedicated to combating health disparities. As a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity (CHE), she focuses on obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease to reduce health disparities for high-risk women and their families.
Bennett's current trial, Healthy for Two (H42-HV), is one of four studies at CHE's Mid-Atlantic Center for Cardiometabolic Health Equity (MACCHE). Through this study, Bennett and her team will measure the effects of a telehealth coaching program tailored to pregnancy and postpartum care on postpartum weight. Bennett's team aims to democratize access to critical medical resources through extensive partnerships with prenatal care facilities and community-based efforts, including an early home visiting program in this trial.
“I am a leader in the field of dedicated and amazing clinicians and researchers who are committed to promoting patient-centered behavior change, engaging with communities and patients, and considering important research questions that impact policy makers. I am honored to work with the team,” said Bennett.
The H42-HV study primarily focuses on Black and Latina women. Because these populations have the highest rates of obesity, Black and Latina women are at increased risk for gestational diabetes, hypertensive disorders, and intrapartum acute cardiovascular events during pregnancy and postpartum.
“I am a leader in the field of dedicated and amazing clinicians and researchers who are committed to promoting patient-centered behavior change, engaging with communities and patients, and considering important research questions that impact policy makers. I am honored to work with the team.”
-Wendy Bennett, MD, MPH
For Bennett, the implications of this research go far beyond reducing adverse pregnancy outcomes. She says, “Pregnant women are motivated to give birth to healthy babies, so pregnancy not only reduces adverse pregnancy outcomes, but also ultimately prevents long-term cardiometabolic disease in women and their infants.” It is an ideal 'teachable moment' for The goal of this study is to promote healthy pregnancies and empower participants to make sustainable and healthy lifestyle changes for themselves and their families.
Bennett believes her research on H42-HV has the potential to impact individual patients and their families, the larger community, and even public policy.
“My job is to identify health service and community-based solutions to address systems and patient-level cardiometabolic risks, and to engage patients and communities to create and sustain behavior change. We hope to improve the health of ourselves and our families,” Bennett said.
The H42-HV study is currently enrolling participants who are also registered on our affiliated home visiting site.
