“Will they take the medicines? Children’s adherence to antiretroviral therapy in a resource-limited setting” was presented by Rachel C. Vreeman, MD, MS on Wednesday February 18, 2009 in the Methodist Petticrew Auditorium. Dr. Vreeman explained the critical role of adherence to the medications for HIV in resource-limited settings, evaluated the current state of children’s adherence to the medications for HIV in low-income countries, and identified the key factors sustaining children’s adherence to antiretroviral therapy in western Kenya.
Dr. Vreeman is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine and a member of the Riley Children’s Health Services Research Program. In addition, she is Co-Director of Pediatric Research for the Academic Model for the Prevention and Treatment of HIV/AIDS (AMPATH), an academic collaboration that provides comprehensive HIV treatment for over 80,000 patients in Kenya. Dr. Vreeman is also an Affiliated Scientist at the Regenstrief Institute for Health Care, a Faculty Investigator with the Center for Health Policy and Professionalism Research, and a Faculty Scholar with the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI). Dr. Vreeman is a pediatrician who received her MD from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, and completed her internship, residency, and a chief residency in Pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. She also completed a fellowship in Children’s Health Services Research and a Masters degree in Clinical Research from the Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Vreeman’s research work focuses on the development of instruments to improve health care within resource-limited settings. In particular, she studies how best to measure health behaviors, such as adherence to medicine for HIV. She coordinates an international research collaboration aimed to improve children’s health outcomes in Kenya. Dr. Vreeman is also a member of an expert advisory panel for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.