About Us
We believe that access to quality healthcare and education is a fundamental human right, and we are dedicated to working with local organizations, healthcare providers, and community members to promote women's health and wellness. Through our work, we hope to create a healthier, more vibrant community where women can thrive and lead fulfilling lives.
MISSION
Our mission is to advance the quality and outcomes of women’s healthcare throughout the community. SBWHC strives to create a welcoming and inclusive environment that encourages dialogue, collaboration, and innovation. By fostering connections between women of all backgrounds and the organizations and individuals caring for them, SBWHC promotes knowledge-sharing, empowerment, and collective action.
Our values are rooted in equity, diversity, and inclusion. We recognize the unique challenges and barriers that women face in accessing healthcare, and we are committed to addressing these issues through community engagement, education, and advocacy.
OBJECTIVES
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Build a welcoming and inclusive community around women’s health.
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Better understand the challenges women, and those caring for them, experience across the lifespan.
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Foster new connections within our community in support of advancing women’s health.
FRAMEWORK
Recognizing that women’s health is a broad subject and that healthcare needs vary throughout each individual’s life cycle, SBWHC will focus our research on three stages of life:
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Adolescence through Young Adulthood
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Reproductive and Maternal Health
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Menopause and Aging
We strive to identify the unique needs of women in each stage, with dedicated focus on the following subtopics as well:
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Chronic Health Conditions
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Health Equity and Racial Health Disparities
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LGBTQ+ Health
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Mental Health
Meet the Team
Katrina Mitchell MD, IBCLC, PMH-C, FACS
SBWHC Founder
Dr. Katrina Mitchell is a board-certified general surgeon, fellowship-trained breast surgical oncologist, international board certified lactation consultant (IBCLC), and a certified perinatal mental health provider (PMH-C). As part of the breast care program at Sansum Clinic and the Ridley-Tree Cancer Center, her practice focuses on the surgical management of benign and malignant breast disease, and the treatment of maternal complications of lactation. As perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) often co-exist with breastfeeding challenges, Dr. Mitchell provides medication management for these conditions in collaboration with perinatal therapists.
Dr. Mitchell formed Santa Barbara Women’s Health Coalition after receiving tremendous support from her op-ed calling for improvements in local women’s healthcare.
Kathy Kelley
Sharon Byrne
Marie Claire Lamb, MD
Menopause and Aging Committee Co-Chairs
Kathy is the Director of Development and Alumni Relations at Montessori Center School. Sharon has a consulting practice in community organizing and political messaging. Additionally, she participates as a Delegate for the UN Conference on the Status of Women. Dr. Marie Claire Lamb is an Internal Medicine Physician at Sansum Clinic. Their collective backgrounds and expertise lends unique insight and advocacy to the needs of women during menopause and beyond.
Caitlin Jennings
Director of Operations & Maternal Health Committee Chair
Caitlin works remotely for Instacart as Sr. Program Manager, recently launching Instacart Health. She is passionate about support for all moms, especially their mental health. Caitlin plans on using her background in program management to guide the Maternal Health Committee through productive discussion and research.
Kari Robinson
Chronic Health Conditions Committee Chair
Kari works at UCSB as the Associate Director of Legal and Medical Humanities, initiatives that seek to train students aspiring toward careers in law and medicine. For her graduate studies, Kari conducted research in Berlin on abortion pregnancy counseling at women’s health centers that also offered expansive care. Kari’s eldest son had chronic health conditions throughout childhood, which together with her own experience navigating breast cancer, motivated her commitment to leading the Chronic Health Conditions Committee.
Ashley Hollister
Adolescence through Young Adults Committee Chair
Ashley is the COO at DeftEdge, a consulting firm that helps governments, multilateral institutions, nonprofits and businesses improve effectiveness through institutional reform. As an international development professional, she has worked to build the capacity of organizations and programs in East Africa, Latin America and East Asia to target and achieve social objectives around education, market inclusion for women, youth and refugees, and preventing and responding to gender-based violence. And as a trained social worker, she has worked in New York and Michigan as a counselor and advocate for child and adolescent mental health and youth violence prevention programs. She is eager to merge these two perspectives as the Chair of the Adolescence through Young Adults Committee.
Kristen Adams
Managing Director
Kristen is the Marketing Manager at Sansum Clinic, focused on Ridley-Tree Cancer Center initiatives. Improving women's healthcare has become a personal priority of hers since becoming pregnant with her daughter in 2018. She is excited to use her background in project management and communications to facilitate research, open discussion, and collaboration to create meaningful change for women in Santa Barbara County.
Megan Spencer
Emma Schuster
Health Equity and Racial Health Disparities Committee Co-Chairs
Megan and Emma are both moms and PhD students in Feminist Studies at UCSB. Megan studies and teaches about black feminism and environmental politics. Emma’s research focuses on reproductive justice and disability.
LGBTQ+ Health Committee Chair
Cherise Lastra
Cherise is the Clinical Research Supervisor at Ridley-Tree Cancer Center. She works closely with the research team, oncologists and other clinical staff to conduct safe and compliant clinical research. Cherise was born and raised in Santa Barbara and currently lives in the Santa Ynez Valley with her family. She is passionate about collaborating with the community to improve how we serve women’s healthcare needs.
Get Involved
Join health professionals and community leaders to improve care for women in Santa Barbara County.
Participate in a committee
We are conducting focused research and discussions on the topics below. To participate, please reach out to info@sbwhc.org and specify which committee(s) you would like to join:
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Adolescence through Young Adults
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Chronic Health Conditions
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Health Equity and Racial Health Disparities
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LGBTQ+ Health
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Maternal Health
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Menopause and Aging
Note: Mental health will be a key topic discussed and evaluated within each committee
volunteer your professional expertise
The coalition is a volunteer-led effort and needs professional support in many areas, including communications, research, data analysis, creative development and business development. If you are interested, please email info@sbwhc.org.
Upcoming Events
For the latest updates on our events, join our mailing list!
“The Menopause Manifesto”
Book Club
January 2024
Join us for a guided discussion and reflection on Dr. Jen Gunter's eye opening book, The Menopause Manifesto.
“An exhilarating read and a comprehensive review of all things menopause.”
- Lori Davis, DNP, NCMP
North American Menopause Society
LIMITED TICKETS!
RSVP HERE
Past Events - Recordings
New Frontiers in Women's Health - September 9, 2023
UC Santa Barbara neuroscientist Emily Jacobs presented her research on women's brains during major hormonal transitions, including pregnancy and menopause. Presented in partnership with UCSB Affiliates and Ann S. Bowers Women’s Brain Health Initiative.
Community Guidelines
We’re all in this together to create a positive space for enriching and productive discussion. Please follow these guidelines when participating in the Santa Barbara Women’s Health Coalition community.
Get Involved
We’re a community of tremendously passionate people. Don’t hold back in sharing your knowledge and being part of the conversation. If you’re new, say hello and get involved! While we encourage involvement and sharing, it is up to you whether you would like to share or not.
Keep It Friendly
Keep your comments (verbal and written) kind and be respectful of other participants. Be open and understanding of others whose opinions may differ. Healthy debates are natural, but kindness and respect is a prerequisite to participate in any conversation.
No Hate Speech or Bullying
Make sure everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn’t allowed, and degrading comments about topics such as race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity will not be tolerated. Do not bad-mouth or ridicule entire groups of people, professions, or organizations. We are here to create bridges where they do not exist, not push people further away.
Respect Lived Experience of Discrimination
We are working to create a space where people with lived experience of discrimination are respected and not subjected to further marginalisation. This means comments that could be considered ‘microaggressions’ are also not acceptable. Examples of comments that will not be tolerated could include negative comments about something that is a part of who someone is (for example, an accent, a stutter, or their appearance) or denial of their identity and experiences (for example, deliberately or continuously misgendering an individual). Further, in alignment with the SBWHC’s goal of increasing representation of all voices across our community, we encourage seeking out and learning more about experiences of discrimination throughout the county and representing these voices to the best of our ability.
Focus on Professional Challenges (and take care when talking about personal challenges)
While we know that professional and personal challenges are often deeply intertwined, our team and the SBWHC community are not qualified mental health professionals (with a few exceptions). For this reason, we aim to focus on professional challenges in events and group discussions.
Respect Everyone’s Privacy
Experiences, stories, and opinions shared in a discussion should stay private. Be mindful of sharing personally identifying information about yourself or others. Screenshots, videos and sharing conversations/sensitive information with anyone outside the community is a breach of trust. We ask that you make a commitment to confidentiality as part of your work in this group.
Media Permissions
If you are a journalist, you must obtain permission from SBWHC Admins to report on any event or group discussion. Due to the sensitive nature of our discussions, please respect the privacy of those that might not wish to have their opinions shared publicly.
Advice - General
We don’t necessarily endorse, support, sanction, encourage, verify, or agree with the comments, opinions, or statements made by SBWHC members. Where necessary, you should seek professional advice.
Advice - Financial
You should consider whether discussion and information is appropriate to your needs. Discussion should not be used as financial advice and where necessary, you must consult with a financial expert.
Advice - Medical
You should consider whether discussion and information is appropriate to your needs. Discussion should not be used as medical advice and where necessary, you must consult with a medical professional.
Report It
If you see or hear a comment that violates our guidelines, please report it to the SBWHC Admins at info@sbwhc.org
Following the Guidelines
If you have made a comment that the SBWHC views as contravening our community guidelines, we will contact you with a reminder of these rules of engagement. If you choose not to follow our community guidelines, you may be asked to leave an event or group discussion.
In the News
Santa Barbara Independent, 9/7/23
Santa Barbara Newspress, 12/28/22
Santa Barbara Newspress, 12/27/22
Santa Barbara Newspress, 12/27/22
Santa Barbara Newspress, 12/05/22
Montecito Journal, 10/25/22
Santa Barbara Independent, 10/11/22
Noozhawk.com, 10/05/22
Santa Barbara Independent, 07/28/22
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