Daniel Westreich

Dr. Daniel Westreich serves as Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at UNC Chapel Hill's Gillings School of Global Public Health, where his work bridges substantive HIV-reproductive health intersections and methodological advances in causal inference. His research directly impacts clinical practice through cohort leadership and methodological innovations.

Dr. Westreich earned his PhD in Epidemiology from UNC Chapel Hill in 2008. His substantive research examines HIV's interplay with reproductive health, notably pregnancy effects on antiretroviral therapy response and hormonal contraception's impact on HIV acquisition, while methodologically he pioneers causal inference techniques and implementation science methods to translate findings into real-world settings. Current projects extend to HIV-chronic disease comorbidities and pandemic responses.

Recent publications (2024-2025) reveal three dominant trends: (1) HIV-reproductive health dynamics in diverse populations (particularly US Southern women and Malawian adolescents), (2) methodological rigor in addressing selection bias and causal transportability, and (3) emerging intersections of HIV with chronic conditions and pandemic impacts. These works consistently employ advanced cohort methodologies and causal frameworks.

His scientific recognition includes:

• NIH DP2 New Innovator award (2014) for methodological development

Dr. Westreich leads the NIH-funded STAR Cohort (tracking reproductive-age women with/without HIV in the US South) and co-investigates the MACS-WIHS Combined Cohort Study. His grant portfolio supports both substantive HIV research and methodological innovation, reflecting dual expertise in disease-specific epidemiology and foundational causal methods. As author of Epidemiology by Design and Associate Editor of the American Journal of Epidemiology, he shapes methodological discourse while mentoring next-generation researchers through cohort leadership.

His laboratory infrastructure centers on the STAR Cohort team and MACS-WIHS collaborations, involving multidisciplinary researchers across clinical, statistical, and public health domains. These teams maintain longitudinal data systems tracking reproductive outcomes, chronic disease progression, and pandemic impacts among HIV-affected populations, with strong community engagement in Southern US sites.