Kara Boeldt

Kara Boeldt is an internationally recognized patient advocate and advisor, the Founder & Director of EndPreeclampsia.org and its global patient support network. After suffering a traumatic first pregnancy in which she developed severe preeclampsia, HELLP syndrome, and a silent placental abruption at 31 weeks gestation, followed by a NICU stay and subsequent surgeries for her infant daughter, she began seeking out others who had been through something similar. She realized that there was limited support available where women could share their experiences and find evidence-based information.

In order for no woman to feel alone, as she did after her preeclampsia experience, Kara and a small group of dedicated volunteers from across the world began operating Preeclampsia, Eclampsia & HELLP Syndrome Survivors Global Support Group.

Kara is a Certified Trauma-Informed Professional, a Patient Advisor for several organizations and research studies, including the Illinois Perinatal Quality Collaborative, the Patient Advisor for the $10 Million HRSA Grant partnership between the University of Iowa Health Care and the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services to improve maternal outcomes for women in Iowa which supported the development of the Iowa Maternal Quality Care Collaborative for whihc she advises, and a member of several other PQC's, as well as a Patient Advisory Board Member for Comanche Biopharma. Kara is a member of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, and Association of Women's Health, Obstetrics, and Neonatal Nurses, and a Stakeholder Advisory Board member of the Institute for Clinical and Translational Science. Kara has given talks at Perinatal Conferences, Grand Rounds and Postgraduate Courses for the University of Wisconsin, the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics and UnityPoint Health, and at the Annual Conference of The Society of Maternal-Fetal Medicine. She’s consulted with physician-scientists and research students in Biodesign Innovation and Translational Science programs at Stanford University, Georgetown University, University of Iowa, and Harvard University.  She is a guest lecturer for the undergraduate Translational Biomedicine courses at the University of Iowa and a guest project reviewer for the graduate coursework.

EndPreeclampsia is a National Sponsor of the American Cancer Society's - Cancer Action Network biomarker legislation work. With a biomarker for Preeclampsia approved through the FDA in May of 2023 Kara found it imperative to support a fellow organization in their disease-agnostic championing of accessible healtcare in the United States. This biomarker legislation, when adopted by states without limitations on specific disease, has the potential to help those with preeclampsia access biomarker testing with insurance and/or medicaid coverage. Kara was the HOPE Award Recipient for Maternal Health Volunteer of the Year in 2009, and the Champions for Change Maternal Health Champion of the Year award recipient in 2019. She has led charitable giving initiatives raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Maternal Health causes over the last 17 years. Kara resides in Chicago, IL.