Sexual and Gender Minority Health Scientific Interest Group

Part of NIH’s priority is to support a range of biomedical, clinical, behavioral, and social science research to advance the health of all sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations, with a specific interest in the disease areas and health conditions that most disparately affect these individuals.

SGM populations include, but are not limited to, individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, transgender, Two-Spirit, queer, and/or intersex. Individuals with same-sex or -gender attractions or behaviors and those with a difference in sex development are also included. These populations also encompass those who do not self-identify with one of these terms but whose sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or reproductive development is characterized by non-binary constructs of sexual orientation, gender, and/or sex.

The goals of the Sexual and Gender Minority Health Scientific Interest Group (SGM Health SIG) are:

  1. to provide a forum to connect individuals trained in different scientific disciplines across the NIH engaged or interested in conducting SGM health research;
  2. to provide intramural researchers and trainees a venue to share and receive feedback on their proposed research, their preliminary results, their published findings, and discuss publications related to SGM health; and
  3. to provide opportunities for career development, networking, and community engagement.

The overall objectives of the SGM Health SIG are:

  1. to provide a space to discuss topics and research questions related to SGM health;
  2. to explore the intersections of individual, interpersonal, social, and structural factors impacting SGM health; and
  3. to provide a platform to allow members to learn and educate one another about SGM health research.

The SGM Health SIG is a partnership between the NIH Institutes, Center, and Offices (ICOs) Intramural Research Program (IRP) and the Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office (SGMRO), which sits within the Office of the Director, Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives. While regular activities for the SGM Health SIG will be led by members of the IRP, the SGMRO will provide guidance to the SGM Health SIG by selecting and inviting extramural scientists to present scientific lectures to the group. SGMRO will also work to assist IRP researchers leverage resources to better engage in SGM health research and help identify mentors for trainees.

The SGM Health SIG will be open to all interested NIH intramural and extramural investigators, other Federal agencies, and area universities seeking to learn more about SGM health and hopes to foster new research collaborations across the NIH campus. To attract researchers and trainees, a listserv will be established to share meeting announcements and SGM-related information. The SIG will also work with OITE and other ICO programs to recruit interested trainees. The SIG will have regularly scheduled meetings every 2-3 months. Meetings will feature presentations by invited NIH staff, extramural researchers, and SIG members, and discussions about research ideas and relevant publications. Once a year, the SIG will hold a retreat to provide enrichment opportunities for trainees. Intramural researchers and program staff may be asked to mentor intramural trainees through group mentorship during meetings. Intramural trainees will be asked to share their interest in SGM-related research during meetings so that intramural researchers can provide on-the-spot feedback and career development guidance. Additionally, intramural researchers and program staff will be asked to share research and training opportunities that would be beneficial to intramural trainees. Lastly, the SGM Health SIG will serve as a resource for identifying datasets available to the IRP which include data on SGM status.

Mailing List

To join the Sexual and Gender Minority Health Scientific Interest Group mailing list, please visit the Sexual and Gender Minority Health Scientific Interest Group Listserv home page, then click the “Subscribe or Unsubscribe” link in the right sidebar.

Scientific Focus Areas

This page was last updated on Thursday, December 19, 2024