Dr. Rulin Hechter received her PhD training in the Fogarty AIDS International Training and Research Program of the UCLA Department of Epidemiology. She is a Research Scientist at the Epidemiologic Research Division of the Research and Evaluation Department at Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC). She serves on the regional HIV/AIDS management committee and HIV patient registry of KPSC. Dr. Hechter is the site Principal Investigator (PI) of the Health Systems Node of the NIDA funded CTN (National Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network) and she serves as the site PI on FDA funded opioids safety studies among pregnant women and patients with chronic pain.
Dr. Hechter is also a co-investigator of the CDC funded multisite Vaccine Safety Datalink project. She serves on the regional HIV/AIDS management committee and HIV patient registry and Transgender Patient Management Tool (TGPMT) project committee of Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC).
Dr. Hechter has three main areas of focus in her research: 1) Prevention of and treatment for sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS, HIV- associated cardiovascular disease and aging, impact of psychiatric disorders and substance abuse on HIV care engagement, and disparities in HIV treatment adherence and outcomes. 2) Chronic care model and sustainable interventions to improve substance abuse treatment outcomes and provide integrated care for individuals with substance use disorders who also have other serious co-occurring chronic conditions or infections and 3) The safety and effectiveness of vaccines, and the influence of policy and systemic intervention on vaccine uptake in children and adults.