Preparing for Respiratory Virus Season

Komkwuan Paruchabutr, DNP, FNP-BC, WHNP-BC, CNM, FACNM, FNAP, is a national leader at the intersection of policy, advocacy, and public education in women’s health. A triple-board-certified clinician and U.S. Army combat veteran, Dr. Paruchabutr brings a unique perspective to addressing systemic barriers in sexual, reproductive, and maternal health care. As the first Asian American president of the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health (NPWH) and assistant professor at Georgetown University, School of Nursing, she leads strategic efforts to expand access and advance the role of advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) in closing critical public health gaps.

Dr. Paruchabutr has led high-impact policy initiatives, including NPWH’s amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court and Montana Supreme Court, affirming APRN clinical independence in the delivery of reproductive health care. These actions contributed to decisions that preserved access to essential reproductive services, particularly in underserved communities. She has also provided national testimony before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in support of over-the-counter contraceptive access, which historically received FDA approval in 2023, and before the Environmental Protection Agency on environmental health equity.  In addition, Dr. Paruchabutr served on the steering committee for the National Institutes of Health and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: Women’s Health Research and Development Innovation Equity Forum, which produced the 2023 publication of “The Women’s Health Innovation Opportunity Map: 50 High-Return Opportunities to Advance Global Women’s Health R&D.”

Her work and contributions to multidisciplinary national councils, task forces, roundtable discussions, and working groups have advanced women’s and gender-related health care. She is an accomplished advanced practice clinician widely recognized for her passion for advancing women's and gender-related health care through a diverse, equitable, and inclusive lens.

Geeta K. Swamy, MD, FACOG, is the Haywood Brown, MD, Distinguished Professor of Women’s Health in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology’s Division of Maternal–Fetal Medicine at Duke University. She also serves as associate vice president for research and executive vice dean for clinical sciences and research administration for Duke University and the Duke University School of Medicine. She is a nationally and internationally recognized clinician-researcher and leader in the field of perinatal infectious diseases and maternal immunization. She has led numerous vaccine trials in pregnant women with funding from the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and industry sponsors. She currently serves as the co-principal investigator for Duke’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases vaccine treatment and evaluation program and for the CDC-funded clinical immunization safety assessment project. Dr. Swamy is also a member of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Vaccine Advisory Committee and ACOG’s Immunization, Infectious Disease, and Public Health Preparedness Expert Workgroup.

Todd Wolynn, MD, MMM, FAAP is the executive director of the Trusted Messenger Program, which focuses on empowering health care providers to drive quality outcomes with communication best practices. He has been a vaccination advocate for more than 30 years, which includes his work as a clinical vaccine researcher, immunizing pediatrician, and immunization confidence and communication researcher. Dr. Wolynn is a board-certified pediatrician and was also an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant for 25 years. He founded the Breastfeeding Center of Pittsburgh and served on the United States Breastfeeding Committee for 6 years.

His work has been covered in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times Science Times, The Guardian, and across a range of media formats, including print, digital, podcast, and documentary. The 2022 documentary Virulent: The Vaccine War highlighted his efforts addressing eroding vaccine confidence. In October 2022, Dr. Wolynn received the American Academy of Pediatrics Holyroyd-Sheery Award for outstanding media and public health work in the areas of advocacy, legislation, research, professional and public education, and communication.