Topic: Information needs and concerns of women with RA regarding medications and pregnancy
Presenter: Dr. Mary De Vera, PhD
Overall Presentation Goal:
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease that disproportionately affects females more than males with a substantial portion of female patients diagnosed during their reproductive years. The management of RA during pregnancy is an important clinical challenge, as active disease is associated with poor outcomes for mom and baby. The goal of this webinar is to discuss the challenges faced by women in RA in terms of medication taking before and during pregnancy and information needs and concerns. It will also discuss the role of supports including partners as well as health care providers.
Learning Objectives:
1. To highlight potential gaps in medication taking before and during pregnancy among females with RA
2. To understand information seeking about pregnancy among females with RA and role of social media
3. To understand how females with RA make decisions regarding medications before and duringpregnancy and the role their partners play
MARY DE VERA, PhD
Associate Professor
Dr. De Vera is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at UBC where she holds a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair. She is also a Research Scientist and recently appointed Associate Director at Arthritis Research Canada.
An epidemiologist and health services research, the overarching objective of Dr. De Vera’s research is to support and inform patient journeys in living with and managing chronic disease. She has a productive research area in pharmacoepidemiology focusing on two problems related to medication use – medication adherence and medications in pregnancy, particularly in rheumatology/rheumatic diseases. She has expertise in quantitative research, particularly conducting epidemiologic studies using administrative health databases as well as patient-oriented qualitative research.
