Academia

Research Agenda

1) Identify socio-psychological factors that influence health beliefs, attitudes, and behavioral intentions.

2) Design interventions to improve (a) health decision-making or (b) self-management support.

3) Evaluate intervention usability and efficacy in achieving predefined outcomes

My work expands across 2 major health contexts: Precision Medicine (i.e. genetic testing and pharmacogenomics) and Women's Health (i.e. pelvic & reproductive health am particularly interested in designing digital health interventions (e.g., virtual conversational agents or digital therapeutics) to support shared decision-making and/or chronic care management related to pelvic health disorders.

Certifications

June 2020 | HCD for Public Health Interventions | Columbia Mailman School of Public Health

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Current Projects

All grant-funded projects are in collaboration with my advisor, Dr. Courtney L. Scherr, who directs the Health Communication Interaction Design (HCID) Lab at Northwestern University. Our lab applies communication and behavioral theory to design and test communication-based interventions for patients and clinicians and evaluate messages to identify strategies for improved behavioral and psychosocial health outcomes.

Our lab applies communication and behavioral theory to design and test communication-based interventions for patients and clinicians and evaluate messages to identify strategies for improved behavioral and psychosocial health outcomes.

Improving the Pelvic Health of Women and Girls Through the Use of a Digital Coaching Platform

NIH Small Business Innovation Research Program.
PI: Kimberly Kenton
(2019 - present)

Evaluate the usability and functionality of CeCe, a virtual pelvic health coach designed to improve knowledge and attitudes towards menstrual health in mothers of adolescent daughters (Qualitative/Human-Centered Design).

Integration of Genomics into the Clinical Care of Sudden Cardiac Death

American Heart Association Strategically Focused Research Network.
PI: Beth McNally
(2019 - present)

Design an educational program for cardiology providers to increase the clinical integration of cardiovascular genetics for sudden cardiac death (Qualitative).

Increasing African American Recruitment to Pharmacogenomics Studies through Message Design

Delaney Family Fund for Research in Health Communication.
PI: Courtney Scherr
(2018 - present)

Develop and test communication strategies to improve African American patient engagement in pharmacogenomics research (Qualitative).

Communicate and Learn about your Variant of Uncertain Significance

National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health R03.
PI: Courtney Scherr
(2017 - present)

Develop an educational booklet for women who receive a variant of uncertain significance results from genetic testing for hereditary breast cancer to guide medical management and information-sharing (Qualitative).

Experience with Oncofertility

National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health R03.
PI: Courtney Scherr
(2017 - present)

Evaluate patient experience and decision-making after fertility preservation counseling in oncology (Qualitative/Quantitative).

Publications & Conference Presentations

Scherr CL, Ramesh S, Getachew-Smith, H, Kalke, K, Ramsey, K, Fischoff, B, & Vadaparampil, ST (2020; Conditional Acceptance) How Patients Deal with an Ambiguous Medical Test: Decision-Making after Genetic Testing. Patient Education & Counseling

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Scherr CL, Ramesh S, Marshal-Fricker C and Perera M. (2019) A review of African Americans’ beliefs and attitudes about genomic studies: Opportunities for message design. Frontiers in Genetics, 10 , 548.

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Su D, Ramesh S, Qu J, Farazi PA, Wang H, & Siahpush M (2019) Ready, willing and able to participate in cancer clinical trials: Insights from a theory on fertility transition. Journal of Health Science & Education 3(2), 158. DOI: 10.0000/JHSE.1000158

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Scherr CL, Aufox S, Ross A, Ramesh S, Wicklund CA, & Smith M. (2018). What people want to know about their genes: A critical review of the literature on large-scale genome sequencing studies. Healthcare 6(3), 96.

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Teaching Experience

My teaching experience ranges from undergraduate to master’s level courses. I have taught/ assisted courses held in-person, virtually, synchronously, and asynchronously.

Certifications

May 2020 | Teaching Certificate Program | Northwestern University Searle Center for Teaching Excellence

  • Introduction to Health Communication

    Spring 2020
    Teaching Assistant
    An undergraduate-level course exploring the theory, research, and skills associated with communicating in health contexts.

  • Undergraduate Research Seminar

    Media, Culture, & Health

    Winter 2020
    Instructor
    An undergraduate-level junior writing seminar examining how entertainment media representations and celebrity influence can shape social and cultural meanings of health topics.

  • The Rookie General Manager

    Spring 2019 & Spring 2020
    Teaching Assistant
    A masters-level course (MBA) in Kellogg School of Management utilizing case studies to evaluate the role, problems, and excitement of transitioning to and becoming a new general manager.

  • Difficult Conversations in Health

    Winter 2018 & Winter 2019
    Teaching Assistant
    An undergraduate-level course exploring the theory, research, and skills associated with communicating in health contexts.

  • Changing Health Behavior

    Summer 2018
    Teaching Assistant
    A master-level course covering select communication and behavioral science theories and concepts that apply to the analysis of health-related behaviors.