Tianna Petersen, M.S.

Manager of Clinical Research
Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine

First UTSW job: Clinical Technologist II.

Best part about my job: The people I’ve met over the years and still stay in touch with.

What energizes me at work: Interacting with co-workers. I feel like this is my second home.

How co-workers describe me: Always willing to help, hardworking, dedicated, energetic, and knowledgeable with a positive attitude.

Recipe for success: Dedication and the drive to achieve.

I’m really good at: Organization and remembering numbers for anything.

I wish I were an instant expert in: Cooking. I don’t like to cook, and whenever I do, the food comes out very bland.

Passions: Crocheting, working out, and reading. I enjoy volunteering at the East Lake Pet Orphanage’s cat shelter, and I have three cats of my own.

Surprising fact: I was part of a team studying the effects of microgravity on the brains and nervous systems of astronauts in 1998. The STS-90 mission crew included two former UTSW faculty members: Jay C. Buckey Jr., M.D., and James A. Pawelczyk, Ph.D.

Final thought: I’ve spent 21 of my 25 years here with Infectious Diseases, starting as a Clinical Research Coordinator for studies with HIV-positive patients. Since then, I’ve worked on hepatitis B, hepatitis C, influenza, and now COVID-19 trials.