The Purpose of the Chicago Health and Life Experience's of Women Study
The CHLEW is designed to gather one of the most comprehensive sets of information ever collected about lesbians’ health, their attitudes and beliefs, problems and stresses and relationships with important people in their lives.
The CHLEW is one of the first studies of lesbian health to be funded by the National Institutes of Health. The first phase of the study was funded shortly after the release of a major report on lesbian health by the Institute of Medicine. This report concluded that additional research is needed to determine if lesbians are at higher risk for some health problems.
In 2000-2001 we interviewed 447 women who were 18-83 years old. The second round of interviews took place in 2003-2004 (with a few in 2005). We were able to locate and interview 384 (about 86%) of the women first interviewed in 2000-2001. You can view some of the highlights of our findings from 2000-2001 and 2003-2004 in Microsoft Power Point.
Because the CHLEW was among the first federally funded studies of lesbian health, it has received national and international attention. Information about the CHLEW and some of the findings has been published in a monthly column in the Windy City Times. Click here to view the columns and see a list of other media coverage of the CHLEW study.
The CHLEW is also the first long-term study of lesbian health. We are currently seeking additional funding to support a third round of interviews in 2008 or 2009. This would allow us to gather information about changes in lesbians’ lives over 8 years and would provide even stronger information about the health of lesbians. Click here for more information about the next phase of the study.
We hope to stay in contact with as many of our study participants as possible, regardless of where they currently live. If you are a participant in the CHLEW, please send us updates of any changes in your address or phone number. You can reach the study office toll free at (866) 933-3459 or by e-mail at chlewstudy@yahoo.com. We welcome your feedback and questions.
Special
thanks to our participants-
We couldn’t have come this far without you!
