The Executive Committee of the  Third Coast HIV-related Cardiovascular and Sleep Disorders Career Development Program congratulates Dr. Jade Pagkas-Bather for her appointment as a K12 scholar.

Dr. Pagkas-Bather is an instructor of medicine and infectious diseases specialist at the University of Chicago, and a faculty member of the Chicago Center for HIV Elimination and the Third Coast Center for AIDS Research. Her two-year project, “The impact of sleep quality on PrEP uptake and adherence among young Black men who have sex with men (YBMSM),” will utilize existing network data and develop new survey instruments on stress and sleep quality. Dr. Pagkas-Bather’s overall research focus examines neighborhood, network, and other social contexts in which YBMSM access HIV/STI services, with the goal of improving uptake of and adherence to combination biomedical interventions.

With mentors, Drs. John Schneider and Alida Bouris, Dr. Pagkas-Bather will also pursue additional advanced training in network epidemiology and community-engaged research.

All K12 scholars participate in career development activities sponsored by the Third Coast Cardiovascular and Sleep Disorders Career Development Program, a multi-institution and cross-disciplinary initiative between the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (K12 HL143959; MPIs John Schneider and Hossein Ardehali). Congratulations to Dr. Pagkas-Bather on this outstanding achievement!