The OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN PUBLIC HEALTH AWARD recognizes an individual for their extraordinary work and enormous contributions to public health.

Vivian W. Pinn, MD was inaugural director of the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health from 1991 and Associate Director of NIH for Women’s Health Research from 1994 until her retirement in 2011 when she was named Senior Scientist Emerita at the NIH Fogarty International Center. Under her leadership, the new office led the implementation of NIH inclusion policies for women and minorities in clinical research, developed the first and several subsequent national strategic plans for women’s health research, and established new research initiatives and career development programs in collaboration with NIH Institutes and Centers. She established and co-chaired the NIH Committee on Women in Biomedical Careers with the NIH Director. Prior to NIH she was Professor and Chair of Pathology at Howard University and previously held teaching appointments at Harvard and Tufts Universities. Dr. Pinn is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 1995. A graduate of Wellesley College, she earned her M.D. from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. She received her post-graduate training in Pathology as an NIH Research Fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital. A Past President of the National Medical Association, she currently serves on the Board of Trustees/Advisors of Thomas Jefferson University, the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson, Tufts University School of Medicine and the KGI School of Medicine, and holds the position of Professor, Institute for Advanced Discovery & Innovation at the University of South Florida. The University of Virginia School of Medicine has named one of its four advisory medical student colleges as ‘The Pinn College’ and in 2016 the medical research and education building at UVA was renamed for her as “Pinn Hall.”

Hear more from Dr. Pinn on her vision for elevating women’s health and the challenges and triumphs that have defined her trailblazing path in the health equity arena.

For more information about the Outstanding Achievement in Public Health Awards, generously supported by Johnson & Johnson, click here.