Helena Chmura Kraemer

Honors and Awards

• Member, Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences (2003)
• Member, International College of Geriatric Psychiatry (2002)
• Franklin Ebaugh Prize, Stanford University (2001)
• Harvard Prize in Psychiatric Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Harvard University (2001)
• Member, American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (1994)

Professional Education

Current Research Interests

I am interested in the methodology pertinent to dealing with research problems where biological and behavioral interests meet. These interests have been applied not only in psychiatric research, but in those areas of Cardiology, Pediatrics and other fields of medicine in which behavioral research is becoming ever more salient.

Specifically, I am interested in the methods of assessing the quality of measurement (evaluation of medical tests, reliability, validity), in methods of detecting the sources of errors and correcting them, and in the impacts of such errors both on clinical decision making and on research.

This interest is fundamentally related to my interest in design issues for both valid, powerful and effective research projects. I have been involved in the full range of medical research projects, from randomized clinical trials, to epidemiological studies, to preventions studies and even to basic research projects. From this has come research into the issues of statistical power, and strategies to improve power by exercising design considerations rather than increasing sample size.

Finally I am involved as much as possible with efforts to train medical researchers and clinicians to recognize the problems with inference from research project results.

Publications

• Emotional well-being does not predict survival in head and neck cancer patients: a Radiation Therapy Oncology Group study. Spiegel D, Kraemer HC. Cancer. 2008; 112 (10): 2326-7; author reply 2327-8
• Elderly patients with dementia-related symptoms of severe agitation and aggression: consensus statement on treatment options, clinical trials methodology, and policy. Salzman C, Jeste DV, Meyer RE, Cohen-Mansfield J, Cummings J, Grossberg GT, Jarvik L, Kraemer HC, Lebowitz BD, Maslow K, Pollock BG, Raskind M, Schultz SK, Wang P, Zito JM, Zubenko GS. J Clin Psychiatry. 2008; 69 (6): 889-98
• Acetylcholinesterase inhibitor in combination with cognitive training in older adults. Yesavage JA, Friedman L, Ashford JW, Kraemer HC, Mumenthaler MS, Noda A, Hoblyn J. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2008; 63 (5): P288-94
• Faster remission of chronic depression with combined psychotherapy and medication than with each therapy alone. Manber R, Kraemer HC, Arnow BA, Trivedi MH, Rush AJ, Thase ME, Rothbaum BO, Klein DN, Kocsis JH, Gelenberg AJ, Keller ME. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2008; 76 (3): 459-67
• Exploring refinements in targeted behavioral medicine intervention to advance public health. King AC, Ahn DF, Atienza AA, Kraemer HC. Ann Behav Med. 2008; 35 (3): 251-60