Professor Barbara Van Der Pol

Barbara Van Der Pol is Infectious Diseases Endowed Professor of Sexual Health Research in Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Director of the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Infectious Diseases STI Laboratory.

She is a medical laboratory scientist and public health researcher whose work focuses on STI diagnostics, implementation science, and sexual healthcare delivery. Her research examines healthcare utilization, the adoption of point-of-care and self-testing technologies, vaccine acceptability, and approaches to improving access to sexual health services. She has extensive experience evaluating innovative diagnostic tools and studying their integration into clinical and community settings, including over-the-counter testing strategies.

She also collaborates on research aimed at expanding STI and HIV prevention services for underserved and marginalized populations. She serves as Editor-in-Chief of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and provides expert advice on STI diagnostics and clinical management to national regulatory and public health bodies.