Janna Patterson

Dr. Janna Patterson is a Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with the Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (MNCH) team. She manages a portfolio of grants on neonatal health ranging from the prevention and treatment of newborn sepsis to care of the preterm infant, including kangaroo mother care. Dr. Patterson is a board-certified pediatrician and neonatologist. Prior to joining the Foundation, she was a practicing neonatologist and researcher on faculty at the University of Washington. Her research in Kenya focused on transplacental transfer of antibodies to respiratory pathogens in the mother-infant dyad. Her peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters are focused on maternal-neonatal infections, HIV, and prematurity. Previously, Dr. Patterson spent several years living and working in Tanzania including work as a Programme Officer at the Tanzania Public Health Association, and she remains fluent in Swahili. Her education includes a B.A. in African Development from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MD and MPH from the University of Alabama-Birmingham, with graduate medical studies at the University of Washington/Seattle Children’s Hospital.