She is an investigator in the UAB Center for AIDS Research and Center for Palliative and Supportive Care. Her primary area of interest is the intersection of HIV and palliative care, and specifically, HIV and chronic pain. She has investigated the impact of chronic pain on outcomes in HIV-infected patients. She has also conducted qualitative research to better identify HIV-infected patients with chronic pain and understand the chronic pain experience in this patient population. The long-term goal of her work is to ultimately behavioral interventions for chronic pain in patients with HIV. She holds a K12 AHRQ Patient-Centered Outcomes Research career development award, and has also received funding through the UAB Center for Clinical and Translational Science.