Scoop: Women in Global Health launches investigation, man to lead board

“It’s a dystopian nightmare.” That’s what one woman told Devex in response to the news that a man was appointed to be the board chair of Women in Global Health, an international organization aimed at doing quite the opposite — elevating women to positions of influence in global health. The news that the board appointed Jeffrey Mecaskey as board chair came in the wake of news of the sudden termination last week of Dr. Roopa Dhatt as executive director of the organization. She is a co-founder of the organization and has led it for nine years. But the organization told Devex that Mecaskey is only joining on an interim basis and that they are actively recruiting new women board members and expect to appoint a new board chair “in due course.” And in putting these leadership transitions into broader context, the organization told Devex the board has commissioned an extensive investigation into the governance of the organization dating back to 2021, which includes areas such as financial management, delivery, and accountability. Mecaskey took over the role of board chair from Dr. Sheba Meymandi who needed to step down from the board due to “severe ill health,” the organization said. “I’m deeply saddened and bewildered by the actions of the board in recent weeks,” Dhatt wrote to Devex. “As the founder of WGH, I believe deeply in its mission. I welcome the transparency of an independent external investigation, and I hope that the role and actions of the board are included in its remit. The work of WGH must continue - this movement is too important.” ‘A bloody coup’ The organization hasn’t told chapter members about the details on how it came to be that a man was appointed as board chair — prompting outrage. The organization, which launched in 2015, has chapters in 52 countries and around 6,500 members. It calls itself a “women-led movement committed to removing systematic barriers to achieve women’s leadership in health for gender equity, by challenging power and privilege.” Over 85 chapter members from around the world gathered on a Zoom call on Wednesday to voice their outrage over the lack of transparency around the appointment of Mecaskey. Devex obtained a link and attended the meeting. Women in attendance called for both his removal and that of the board of directors. “It really feels like a joke that we have a male chair,” one woman said. One staff member from the organization's global team said she had resigned and told the group, “I cannot condone what I have seen.” She said they “were told that the reason why the board president is a man is because women were approached and women said no.” “A lot of us are really not in support of everything that's happened,” she said. Another woman said that she “was told that he was put in because he was a safe pair of hands, or a firm pair of hands, for women.” They said they were given no information about how the board went about making the decision — saying the global chapters were left out of the process. “It’s a bloody coup,” one woman said. She said they were told the organization said they can’t speak about the decision to appoint Mecaskey because of legal reasons. “This is a values-based organization. It's not a corporate organization. It is a sisterhood,” one woman said. The organization’s budget for this year is $3.7 million. Women were also upset that Mecaskey would be attending the World Health Assembly in Geneva at the end of this month. “Why should we have a white male represent us there as board chair?” one asked. The organization is also hosting an event on the sidelines of WHA. One woman suggested they cancel the event; others asked how they are expected to present themselves amid this “messy” situation. In response, the women from the global chapters are crafting a letter — seen by Devex — of questions and demands for the board. A sudden termination “She was not given any cause. None of these allegations, this huge long list of allegations, have been put to her by the board.” --— Ann Keeling, former senior fellow, Women in Global Health The women in the global chapters also want more information on why Dhatt left the role. The organization published a press release on May 10 saying that she “stepped down” and that Julia Lalla-Maharajh would take over as the acting interim executive director. Then the organization sent out an email on Thursday to chapter members telling them about the investigation and confirmed the board made the decision to change leadership — shortly after informing Devex about it. Ann Keeling, a senior fellow with the organization for seven years, spoke with Devex and said Dhatt was dismissed with immediate effect Tuesday last week. Keeling resigned immediately after that in protest. “She was not given any cause. None of these allegations, this huge long list of allegations, have been put to her by the board,” she said. “The Board have gone into hiding, they appear to have zero support across the Chapters given the dozens of countries who spoke at meetings yesterday and now they seem to be retrofitting an investigation as a last ditch attempt to try to rationalise their behaviour,” she added in writing. “The norm is investigate first and then act on the results of an investigation. Not shoot first and then ask questions later.” But the organization strongly refutes these assertions. “The Board of Directors of Women in Global Health vigorously rejects the statements as unfounded and uninformed. It is regrettable that Women in Global Health’s commitment to full transparency by commissioning a full and independent external investigation is conflated with assumptions which have no basis in reality,” the organization wrote to Devex. The women on the call found the way this was handled disrespectful to Dhatt’s near-decade of commitment to the organization. One woman said Dhatt has been the “heart and soul” of the organization. “All of us are here because of who she was — and no matter what may have happened, we deserve a better explanation, and we deserve better answers,” one woman said. Dhatt told Devex that she is “enormously proud” of the women she worked with in 57 national chapters worldwide. “We have driven positive change in global health. I will always be a part of that community,” she wrote. ‘The next phase’ The organization told Devex that there have been significant transitions with their board of directors since last December. In April and May, the three-person board, which includes Meymandi, Dr. Alastair Dunne, and Shirley Bejarano, “conducted a process” that led to a leadership transition, with an investigation following this change in leadership. “The Board is confident that the full, extensive investigation will provide the organisation with a solid starting point for the next phase of its development, including engagement with stakeholders, under new leadership,” the board said. Mecaskey was invited to join the board on an interim basis in May because his global health credentials and governance experience “are deemed extremely valuable to the organisation,” WGH told Devex. “We are very grateful to have Dr Mecaskey’s support at a time of significant change for the organisation. The Board are actively recruiting new women members and foresee a further Chair transition in due course,” the organization said. Staff members who were present at the Wednesday meeting said they would carry on the messages of the global chapter members to the board. They also said they weren’t in a place to give members the answers they need. No board members were present during the call. “We're here to do all we can to rebuild trust. We know it's not going to be easy. I'm so, so sorry that we are in this situation and that we are not meeting your obvious needs,” one staff member said. The women on the call said this situation feels “all too familiar” to the patriarchy they’ve experienced throughout their careers. “I didn't go through all the shit I've gone through for my entire career just to have a man put in charge of me. For God’s sake,” one woman said.