Rebecca Bartlett Ellis Associate Professor

Dr. Bartlett Ellis' research aims to produce new knowledge to reduce the complexity of medication self-management and improve adherence in people managing multiple chronic conditions. Her research interests lie in in the use of sensors and mobile health (mHealth) technologies to measure the socio-cultural contexts and biobehavioral mechanisms related to medication-taking behaviors, adherence and treatment efficacy, and intervene to improve clinical outcomes. Dr. Ellis uses a team science approach and collaborates with researchers from medicine, clinical pharmacology, nursing, communications, electrical engineering, computer science, and user-centered design. To date, she has developed the Medication-taking Across the Care Continuum and Adherence-related Outcomes (MACO) Framework, which identifies three contexts in which medication-taking behaviors occur. She has examined provider and system factors that affect patient understanding of medications. Her team is currently developing sensor and connected technology integrated systems to improve medication adherence and treatment outcomes. Dr. Ellis has been funded as a principal investigator and co-investigator through the IUSON Center for Enhancing Quality of life in Chronic Illness and Sigma Theta Tau Alpha Chapter. She is a co-inventor on a patented smart pillbox designed to track medication adherence and communicate adherence data via a smart phone app.

Dr. Ellis brings expertise in symptom management, behavioral theory, and understanding mechanisms of behavior change in chronic illness self-management. Dr. Ellis is a board certified advanced practice clinical nurse specialist and has expertise in influencing healthcare in three spheres of influence 1) the patient/family, 2) the healthcare team, and 3) the healthcare system. Her expertise is grounded in her clinical practice in adult gerontology and research in behavioral science related to self-care and medication management. Since 2005, she has been involved in interdisciplinary research and all of her research experiences have focused on biobehavioral, interdisciplinary projects involving children or adults with acute or chronic illness.