Title:

Epidemiologist,
Slone Epidemiology Center

Education:

B.S.N., 1974, Cornell University
M.P.H., 1986, Boston University School of Public Health

Research Interests:

Ms. Van Bennekom’s research interests focus on reproductive health issues and evaluation of risk management programs, in particular programs for drugs that may cause birth defects if taken during pregnancy. In 1990, she began work on national surveys evaluating the effectiveness of pregnancy prevention efforts for isotretinoin (Accutane), thalidomide, and ambrisentan. She is interested in generalizing findings from these pregnancy prevention approaches to assist in the development of risk management programs for other drugs that are uniquely effective, but also have serious potential adverse effects. In addition, Ms. Van Bennekom is interested in analyzing the survey information on contraceptive practices to better understand contraceptive behaviors and efficacy in the general population. Currently she also is analyzing data from registries for patients with multiple myeloma and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS).