SAN DIEGO, Jan. 24, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- Women First HealthCare, Inc. (Nasdaq:WFHC) today announced that Ruth A. Wooden, president and CEO of The National Parenting Association and former CEO of The Advertising Council for over a decade, has been elected to its board of directors.
Ms. Wooden served from August 1987 to June 1999 as president and CEO of The Advertising Council, Inc., the leading producer of public service communications programs in the U.S. Enduring campaigns of the Ad Council include "Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk," "Buckle Your Seat Belt," and "A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste." She has held a variety of senior management, consumer brand management and product launch positions in the advertising industry.
An active member within industry and community sectors, Ms. Wooden currently serves on the boards of U.S. Trust Company, Phoenix House Foundation and Coalition for Quality Children's Media. She also serves as a trustee of the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation and as an advisory committee member of America's Promise, Columbia University Schools of Health Sciences and Public Health, and Harvard Business School Initiative on Social Enterprise.
"It is with great pleasure that we announce Ruth's addition to our board," said Edward F. Calesa, Women First chairman, president and CEO. "As a specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to midlife women, we want to strengthen our ability to understand and relate to the needs of the patient. Both our pharmaceutical business and our consumer business will benefit. Ruth will complement the other members of our board, whose experience is weighted toward the physician."
Ms. Wooden holds a B.A. from the University of Minnesota, with a double major in Sociology and History. She has been the recipient of numerous business and philanthropic awards including the 1998 Maxwell Dane Humanitarian Award (United Jewish Appeal); 1996 Advertising Woman of the Year (Advertising Women of New York); 1995 Prudential Prize in Non-Profit Leadership; and the 1994 Matrix Award (New York Women in Communications).
About Women First HealthCare, Inc.
Founded in 1996, Women First HealthCare, Inc. is a San Diego-based specialty pharmaceutical company. Its mission is to help midlife women make informed choices regarding their health care needs and to provide pharmaceutical and science-based lifestyle product solutions to meet those needs. Women First is specifically targeted to women age 40+ and their clinicians. The Company's Pharmaceutical Division, which includes a nationwide team of experienced sales specialists, contacts primarily OB/GYNs and Nurse Practitioners with estrogen replenishment options-both oral and patch. The Consumer Business is responsible for Daily Difference(TM) dietary supplements, developed in consultation with Tufts University School of Nutrition Science and Policy, and the Company's line of self-care products available through its As We Change(R) national mail order catalog and Internet retailer, www.aswechange.com. Trialogue(TM), the Corporate Marketing Division, is responsible for providing access to Women First's network of opinion leaders and clinicians through strategic marketing programs for sale to major pharmaceutical companies. The Company's business strategy includes the acquisition and licensing of additional prescription products that support its mission. Further information about Women First can be found online at www.womenfirst.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This press release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks, and Women First HealthCare, Inc. cautions you that any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance. Women First HealthCare, Inc. disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including (i) changes in our contractual relationships with Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical and Bristol-Myers Squibb, (ii) our ability to obtain additional financing for our future capital needs, and (iii) additional factors set forth in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 1999 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2000.
News releases from Women First HealthCare, Inc. are available at no charge on Women First's Web site at www.womenfirst.com.