International Society for Infectious Diseases Receives Grant from 
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
to Support Women Healthcare Workers from Developing Countries

Grant will allow women health professionals to attend the 13th International Congress on Infectious Diseases

Boston, MA – December 4, 2007 — Selected women health professionals from Africa, Asia and the Asian subcontinent will be able to attend the 13th International Congress on Infectious Diseases, thanks to a grant to the International Society for Infectious Diseases (ISID) from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The conference takes place June 19-22, 2008 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

A crucial part of ISID's mission is to improve global infection control by providing training of and ongoing education support for physicians, scientists, and other healthcare workers. In developing countries, women particularly suffer the consequences of infectious disease and they are under-represented in the medical field.

"Retaining and supporting women healthcare workers from developing countries is a part of the society's mission to address the global physician shortage and improve the care of women with infectious diseases," says Dr. Richard Wenzel, MD, MSc, the principal investigator on the grant and President of the International Society for Infectious Diseases. "This grant will allow approximately 70 women under the age of 40 with careers in medicine, nursing, public health or infectious diseases to attend the conference free of charge."

The goal of this program is to aid the professional development of women healthcare workers from developing countries so they may become agents of change in their own country. At the conference, the delegates will attend a special reception to meet one another and with current, former and upcoming leaders of ISID. ISID will also provide introduction to specialists the women would like to meet to foster mentor-student relationships. After six months, ISID will follow up with the delegates to check in on their progress and any changes implemented as a result of the grant.
The grants will be awarded to qualified applicants. Interested women can find out more on the web at http://www.isid.org/13th_icid/.

The 13th International Congress on Infectious Diseases will bring together infectious disease experts from around the world to present and discuss the most recent and relevant information in the field. The conference, held every two years, unites approximately 3,000 attendees from over 100 countries.

About International Society for Infectious Diseases
Created in 1986, ISID and its 20,000 members are committed to improving the care of patients with infectious diseases, the training of clinicians and researchers in infectious diseases and microbiology, and the control of infectious diseases around the world. The Society recognizes that infectious diseases cross all national and regional boundaries and that effective long-term solutions require international scientific exchange and cooperation. The Society and its members are dedicated to developing partnerships and to finding solutions to the problem of infectious diseases across the globe.