The Women’s Health Access Matters Collaborative announced the appointment of seven new members, including a cardiologist.

The Women’s Health Access Matters (WHAM) Collaborative said in a press release that one of its new members is Cardiology Today Editorial Board Member Annabelle Santos Volgman, MD, FACC, FAHA, the Carl E. Eybel, MD Chair of Excellence in Clinical Cardiology and the vice chief for academic affairs in the division of cardiology at Rush University Medical Center as well as the co-founder and medical director of the Rush Heart Center for Women.

Volgman, an electrophysiologist who is an expert on atrial fibrillation, has published numerous research on the risk for heart disease and stroke in women.

“When I started my residency in 1984, cardiovascular disease was the No. 1 killer of American women. It is still the No. 1 killer of American women today,” Volgman said in the release. “There has been tremendous progress in women’s heart health over the course of my career that I am proud to have been a part of, but there is still so much more work to be done to help women through prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. Research focused on women is absolutely critical, and I am glad to be joining the WHAM Collaborative to further this important work.”

The members of the WHAM Collaborative work together to identify areas needing research in women’s health, collaborate on such research and raise awareness of the importance of women’s health research, according to the release.