Tulane-Xavier MHIRT Program Site 2- Buenos Aires, Argentina The Argentina site is based in the Department of Mother and Child Health Research at the Institute for Clinical Effectiveness and Health Policy (IECS) in Buenos Aires. IECS is an independent, non-profit organization with the main goal of improving the efficiency, equity, quality and sustainability of health care systems and policies in Latin America. 
U.S. Mentor
Pierre Buekens, MD, PhD, is a perinatal epidemiologist and serves as dean of the Tulane University SPHTM and as director of the Tulane Center for Evidence-Based Global Health. He is also a professor of epidemiology and a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology. Dr. Buekens has conducted several major research projects on preterm births, including the first large randomized controlled trial on repeated cervical examinations during pregnancy. Currently, he is the principal investigator of a study to evaluate a behavioral intervention to increase the use of evidence-based obstetrical practices in Latin America. Overseas Mentors
Jose Belizan, MD, PhD, is the principal overseas mentor in the Argentina/Uruguay site. He is the former director of the Pan American Health Organization's Latin American Center for Perinatology in Montevideo and is currently chair of the Department of Mother and Child Health Research at IECS. Dr. Belizan is an obstetrician and epidemiologist who has collaborated with Dr. Buekens for many years, and he serves as an adjunct faculty member at the Tulane University SPHTM. Fernando Althabe, MD, MSc, is an adjunct professor of public health at the University of Buenos Aires. Currently, he is the coordinator of the perinatal research unit of IECS and is a member of the faculty of the Master's Program in Clinical Effectiveness and a staff researcher in the Department of Mother and Child Health Research at IECS in Buenos Aires. He has considerable experience in the design and conduction of randomized controlled trials in maternal and child health. Fernando Rubinstein, MD, MPH, is the academic director of IECS and subdirector of the Master's Program in Clinical Effectiveness at the University of Buenos Aires. He is a practicing family physician with a strong interest in primary care and health services research. Dr. Rubinstein serves as director of the research unit at the Family and Community Medical Service and is a member of the clinical research committee at the Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires. He is currently developing a research project on the barriers for implementation and evaluation of the effectiveness of the directly-observed therapy short-course strategy for the treatment of TB in high burden areas in Argentina and works as a mentor for master's students conducting clinical research projects. Frederico Augustovksi, MD, is a faculty physician and the subdirector of the research unit in the Family and Preventive Medicine Unit of the Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires. He is also an adjunct professor of public health in the School of Public Health at the University of Buenos Aires. He is currently conducting several economic evaluations, including a Latin American multi-country study of smoking cessation strategies. 
Research Areas
Dr. Buekens is the principal investigator of the "Evidence-Based Global Health Interventions for Mothers and Children, Argentina," which is funded by the Global Network for Women's and Children's Health Research. The goal of this project is to develop and implement common protocols of randomized controlled trials in Latin America, to include an intervention to increase the use of antenatal corticosteroids in developing countries to prevent neonatal deaths. | 
