Our Team

Jeffery Bednarski, MD PhD received his medical degree and PhD from the University of Michigan Medical School. His clinical practice focuses on bone marrow transplantation for the treatment of malignant and immunological disorders in children and young adults.  Bednarski is a part of the Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium and leads efforts at our institution to include our patients in these protocols. Bednarski also runs an institutional trial for a new transplant regimen for patients with immune deficiencies. His research laboratory focuses on basic mechanisms of B cell development.

Caroline Horner, MD completed her medical degree and residency in internal medicine and pediatrics at St. Louis University, and her allergy/immunology fellowship at University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. She is board certified in pediatrics, internal medicine, and allergy and clinical immunology. In addition to general immunology, Horner has a special interest in DiGeorge Syndrome, and leads the Immunology evaluation of patients in a comprehensive DiGeorge syndrome clinic. Horner has been an integral part of the SCID task force for newborn screening in Illinois and Missouri.

Maleewan Kitcharoensakkul, MD, MSCI received her medical degree from Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Thailand and completed her pediatric residency and fellowship in allergy, immunology, and pediatric rheumatology at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University. Kitcharoensakkul leads a monthly Clinical Immunology seminar that provides education to fellows, residents, and other trainees on primary immunodeficiencies. She is also involved in the SCID newborn screen task force, and represented our state at a meeting in Washington DC.

Erica Schmitt, MD, PhD received her medical degree and PhD from the Medical College of Wisconsin. She completed her pediatric residency and fellowship in pediatric rheumatology at Washington University in St. Louis. In addition to general immunology, her clinical interests include immune dysregulation disorders and the intersection between autoimmunity and immune deficiency. She sees patients in Immunology and Rheumatology clinics. Schmitt is part of the Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium and is working to establish an immune dysregulation protocol at our institution. Her research interests include immunological tolerance, immune dysregulation, and genetic causes of primary immunodeficiencies.

Katie completed her Master of Science in Nursing at Saint Louis University and received her Pediatric Nurse Practitioner certification through the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board. She specializes in Pediatric Immunology through the Jeffrey Modell Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Katie has a special interest in managing children with Primary Immune Deficiencies on immunoglobulin replacement therapy and is passionate about educating patients and their families regarding their care and treatment.

Beth has worked in pediatrics for over 13 years. She received her Bachelor’s degree from Chamberlain College of Nursing in 2007 and her Masters of Nursing from Webster University in 2015. Beth is committed to working with patients and families affected by primary immune deficiencies. She enjoys educating patients and their families and making sure they have the guidance and resources they need through diagnosis and treatment.

Kristen is a research coordinator working on our studies focused on primary immunodeficiency. Kristen has experience working in the pharmaceutical industry, as a dental hygienist, and is an experienced clinical research coordinator with past work in oncology.