Wenger Awards 2024
Celebrating outstanding contributions to women’s heart health
The Wenger Awards, named in honor of Dr. Nanette Kass Wenger, recognize outstanding individuals and organizations for their contributions to the field of women’s heart health.
Past recipients have contributed to women’s heart health by advancing cutting-edge research, bringing much-needed diversity to the field, addressing heart health disparities, and expanding the understanding of differences between men’s and women’s heart health, among others.
In addition to honoring these individuals or organizations, we will present the 2024 Dr. Sharonne N. Hayes for Champion Excellence. This Award recognizes WomenHeart Champions who have gone above and beyond in their work supporting, educating, and advocating for women in their communities, furthering WomenHeart’s mission to improve the lives of women with or at risk of heart disease while fighting for equity in heart health.
Who is Dr. Nanette Wenger?
Dr. Nanette Kass Wenger is a recognized clinical cardiologist and professor emerita at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia.
Dr. Wenger began her career by receiving her Doctor of Medicine degree from Harvard Medical School in 1954.
Her career includes serving as the first woman chief resident in the cardiology department at Mount Sinai Hospital, becoming an instructor, and later professor, of medicine at Emory University in 1971, consulting for the Emory Heart and Vascular Center since 1995 and serving as the chief of cardiology of Grady Memorial Hospital in 1998.
Among other outstanding achievements, Dr. Wenger has authored and co-authored over one thousand scientific and review articles and book chapters. She is a leading physician in women’s heart disease, including the 1993 publication of a review article that changed America’s perception of women’s heart conditions, proving that women are more likely than men to die of cardiovascular disease.
Dr. Wegner has received numerous awards, including being named one of Time Magazine’s Women of the Year in 1976, the Woman in Science President’s Award in 1993, and the Elizabeth Blackwell Award and James D. Bruce Memorial Award of the American College of Physicians, both in 2000.
The Wenger Awards aim to recognize the tireless labor of this extraordinary medical professional in advancing the field of women’s heart health.
If you would like to become a sponsor, please contact us at development@womenheart.org
2024 Wenger Awards
Cathy Porter: Dr. Sharonne N. Hayes Award for Champion Excellence
Cathy Porter is an advocate for women living with heart disease; she attended WomenHeart’s Science and Leadership Symposium in 2004, volunteers at Saint Luke’s Health System’s Muriel I. Kauffman Women’s Heart Center, American Heart Association and...
Dr. Maribel Hernandez: Excellence in Clinical Practice
Dr. Hernández was born and raised in Puerto Rico. She was awarded a scholarship to attend Yale University where she received her bachelor’s degree in science. She received her Medical Degree at Stanford University School of Medicine. She did her...
Dr. Erin Michos: Excellence in Medical Leadership
Erin D. Michos, MD, MHS, FACC, FAHA, FASE, FASPC is an Associate Professor of Medicine within the Division of Cardiology at Johns Hopkins University and also holds a joint appointment in the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg...
Pam R. Taub: Excellence in Medical Leadership
Pam R. Taub, MD, FACC, FASPC is a board-certified cardiologist and internationally recognized expert in cardiometabolic disease. She is the founding director of the Step Family Foundation Cardiac Rehabilitation and Wellness Center and Professor of...
Dr. Jeanne Poole: Excellence in Medical Research
Dr. Poole is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Washington, Division of Cardiology, Section of Electrophysiology. She received her medical degree from the University of Washington and went on to complete the majority of her post graduate...
Jennifer Forsyth: Excellence in Media
Jennifer Forsyth is the Director of Human Pharma Communications and Corporate Affairs at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and has more than 20 years of diverse healthcare public relations experience. In her current role, Jennifer advances...