For more than 100 years, International Women's Day has provided an opportunity to advocate for equality for women. Since then, consistent progress has changed the lives of women worldwide, with the right to vote leading to women in public office, and with improved education leading to women in leadership roles. But we still have much to achieve for women's equality, both on a global scale and, of course, here in the United States.

This year, the theme of International Women's Day is "Make it Happen." From a women's health perspective, what does that mean?

On the global stage, too many women confront overwhelming shortages of care. Around the world, more than 280,000 women die every year due to complications in pregnancy and childbirth. This is a tragedy, as countless of these deaths would have been preventable through access to essential care, including intervention by a medical professional.