Research/Areas of Interest:
My research and teaching are at the intersection of health, technology, and behavior change, focusing on how to educate and support patients in leading healthier lives. With a doctorate in computer science and a focus in human-computer interaction, my research initially centered on how technology can help solve health problems. Realizing the limitations of technology adoption and use, my research broadened to identifying the barriers patients face and developing facilitators that address those barriers. My current research focuses on developing behavioral interventions that help individuals improve medication management in the home, and I received a Tufts Springboard award for this research. I am supervising a group of mechanical engineering seniors for their capstone on device design to support medication adherence. I offer professional development on topics including Design Thinking.
Education
- Doctor of Philosophy, Harvard University, USA, 1989
- Master of Science, Brown University, USA, 1981
- Bachelor of Arts, University of Massachusetts, USA, 1979
Biography
Lisa Gualtieri, PhD, ScM, is an associate professor at Tufts University School of Medicine in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine. She teaches courses including Digital Health, Design and Evaluation of Digital Health Technologies, and Using Digital Technology to Reach Health Consumers. Dr. Gualtieri's recent research, funded by Tufts Springboard, focuses on increasing medication adherence through developing a better understanding of home medication management. Her projects include:
1) design of adherence devices that provide reminders only if needed based on daily routines in the home;
2) exploring the impact of climate change on prescription delivery and degradation of drugs due to extreme temperature;
3) supporting informal caregivers who remotely assist a loved one with medication adherence; and
4) exploring if patients identify prescription medication by name, appearance, or purpose and the implications of this for adherence especially during changes in dosing or switching to a generic.
An exploratory research project, with Sebastian Ramos, MD, is investigating adherence to prenatal vitamins in high-risk pregnant people. Other research focuses on the use of wearable activity trackers with underserved populations; the integration of tracker data into clinical care; and the impact of digital literacy skills on adoption of digital health by older adults. She is the founder of RecycleHealth, a non-profit that collects wearable activity trackers to donate to underserved populations, over 7,000 trackers to date. Dr. Gualtieri serves on the FDA's General Hospital and Personal Use Devices Panel. She has a PhD in computer science from Harvard University, a ScM in computer science from Brown University, and a BA in Mathematics from the University of Massachusetts.
1) design of adherence devices that provide reminders only if needed based on daily routines in the home;
2) exploring the impact of climate change on prescription delivery and degradation of drugs due to extreme temperature;
3) supporting informal caregivers who remotely assist a loved one with medication adherence; and
4) exploring if patients identify prescription medication by name, appearance, or purpose and the implications of this for adherence especially during changes in dosing or switching to a generic.
An exploratory research project, with Sebastian Ramos, MD, is investigating adherence to prenatal vitamins in high-risk pregnant people. Other research focuses on the use of wearable activity trackers with underserved populations; the integration of tracker data into clinical care; and the impact of digital literacy skills on adoption of digital health by older adults. She is the founder of RecycleHealth, a non-profit that collects wearable activity trackers to donate to underserved populations, over 7,000 trackers to date. Dr. Gualtieri serves on the FDA's General Hospital and Personal Use Devices Panel. She has a PhD in computer science from Harvard University, a ScM in computer science from Brown University, and a BA in Mathematics from the University of Massachusetts.