Department of Pediatrics

Education

• BA, Brown University, 1989
• MD, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, 1996
• MD, Boston Children's Hospital, 1997
• MD, St. Louis Children's Hospital, 1999

Licensure and Board Certification

• 1999American Board of Pediatrics
• 1999 - PresMissouri Medical License
• 2006American Board of Pediatrics
• 2013 - PresAmerican Board of Pediatrics

Honors and Awards

• Outstanding Resident Award, St Louis Children's Hospital, an award presented by the Missouri Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, 1999
• Recognized by the women Legislators of Missouri in a salute to Women Doctors and Health Care Administrators, 2000
• The Ashley Award, Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, an award for children's advocacy, 2002
• The Community Advocate Award, The St. Louis Chapter of the Missouri Association of Social Welfare, 2004
• Excellence in Pediatrics Award, St Louis Pediatric Society, 2005
• Resident Teaching Award-Outstanding Teacher Award, General Pediatric Medicine, 2006
• Progressive Youth Connection Health Award 2007, 2007
• Best Doctors, St. Louis Magazine, 2007 - 2017
• WUSM Distinguished Faculty Award for Community Service, 2008
• Gerry and Bob Virgil Ethic of Service Award, Washington University, 2010
• Health Care Hero Award, St Louis Business Journal, 2010
• Lighting the Way Award, St Louis for Kids, 2010
• Pioneer Award, National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse - St. Louis, 2010
• AAP Promising Practices Award for Promoting Adolescents' Strengths, 2011
• Community Superhero Award, Voices for Children, 2011
• What's Right with the Region - Demonstrating Innovative Solutions, 2013
• Missouri Foundation for Health Corinne Walentik Award, 2014
• Society of Adolescent Health and Medicine, Midwest Chapter Award, 2014
• Missouri Foundation for Health Corinne Walentik MD Award, 2014
• Trouble Maker of the Best Kind Award- St. Louis Cultural Leadership, 2018
• Job Lewis Smith Award- American Academy of Pediatrics, 2019

Recent Publications view all (23)

Publication Co-Authors

Jane M. Garbutt, M.D.

Fahd Ahmad, M.D., M.S.C.I.

Sarah Garwood, M.D.

Washington University has a long tradition of collaboration amongst colleagues.The faculty above have co-authored publications with Katie Plax, M.D.

1. Gerke DR, Glotfelty J, Schlueter J, Freshman M, Plax K. E-VOLUTION: A Text Messaging-Powered Intervention-Connection, Support, and HIV Eradication. Health Promot Pract. 2020;21(5):716-726. PMID:32757840 
2. Medich M, Swendeman DT, Comulada WS, Kao UH, Myers JJ, Brooks RA, Special Projects of National Significance Social Media Initiative Study Group.. Authorship Correction: Promising Approaches for Engaging Youth and Young Adults Living with HIV in HIV Primary Care Using Social Media and Mobile Technology Interventions: Protocol for the SPNS Social Media Initiative. JMIR Res Protoc. 2019;8(8):e15660. PMID:31502543 
3. Garbutt J, Sterkel R, Ruecker K, Dodd S, Smith E, Plax K. Ready for the Challenge of Depression Care in the Medical Home. Clin Pediatr (Phila). 2019;58(7):816-818. PMID:30866675 
4. Medich M, Swendeman DT, Comulada WS, Kao UH, Myers JJ, Brooks RA, Special Projects Of National Significance Social Media Initiative Study Group.. Promising Approaches for Engaging Youth and Young Adults Living with HIV in HIV Primary Care Using Social Media and Mobile Technology Interventions: Protocol for the SPNS Social Media Initiative. JMIR Res Protoc. 2019;8(1):e10681. PMCID:PMC6374729  PMID:30702434 
5. Garbutt JM, Kulka K, Dodd S, Sterkel R, Plax K. Opioids in Adolescents' Homes: Prevalence, Caregiver Attitudes and Risk Reduction Opportunities. Acad Pediatr. 2018. PMID:29981856 
6. Johnson, S, Trejo, G, Beck, KL, Worsley, C, Tranberg, H, Plax, K, Linton, J. "Building Community Support for Pregnant and Parenting Teenagers using Modified World Cafe' Method" jpag. 2018;18. PMID:29960076 
7. Ahmad FA, Jeffe DB, Plax K, Schechtman KB, Doerhoff DE, Garbutt JM, Jaffe DM. Characteristics of youth agreeing to electronic sexually transmitted infection risk assessment in the emergency department. Emerg Med J. 2018;35(1):46-51. PMCID:PMC5783299  PMID:28801483 
8. Ahmad FA, Jeffe DB, Plax K . Characteristics of youth agreeing to electronic sexually transmitted infection risk assessment in the emergency department Emerg Med J Published Online First. 2017. doi:10.1136/emermed-2016-206199  
9. Gerke D, Budd EL, Plax K. Measurement Noninvariance of Safer Sex Self-Efficacy Between Heterosexual and Sexual Minority Black Youth. J Soc Social Work Res. 2016;7(3):569-584. PMCID:PMC5014365  PMID:27617061 
10. Gerassi,L, Jonson-Reid, M, Plax, K, Kaushik, G.. "Trading Sex for Money or Compensation: Prevalence and Associated Characteristics from a STI clinic sample." Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma. 2016;25(9):909-920. doi:10.1080/10926771.2016.1223245  
11. S Mermelstein,K Plax. "Contraception" Curr Treat Options Peds. 2016;2:171-183. doi:10.1007/s40746-016-0053-9  
12. Mermelstein, S & Plax, K. "Sexually Transmitted Infections" Curr Treat Options Peds. 2016;2:156. doi:10.1007/s40746-016-0058-4  
13. Hoffman BD, Barnes M, Ferrell C, Gellin C, Lichtenstein C, Donnelly J, Kaczorowski J, CHAMP Study Group.. The Community Health and Advocacy Milestones Profile: A Novel Tool Linking Community Pediatrics and Advocacy Training to Assessment of Milestones-Based Competence in Pediatric Residency Training. Acad Pediatr. 2016;16(4):309-13. PMID:27002213 
14. Plax K, Donnelly J, Federico SG, Brock L, Kaczorowski JM. An Essential Role for Pediatricians: Becoming Child Poverty Change Agents for a Lifetime. Acad Pediatr. 2016;16(3 Suppl):S147-54. PMID:27044693 
15. Gerassi LB, Jonson-Reid M, Plax K, Kaushik G. Trading Sex for Money or Compensation: Prevalence and Associated Characteristics from a Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) Clinic Sample. J Aggress Maltreat Trauma. 2016;25(9):909-920. PMCID:PMC5302119  PMID:28190952 
16. Plax K. Plax Responds. Am J Public Health. 2015;105(11):e5-6. PMCID:PMC4605174  PMID:26378835 
17. Garwood SK, Gerassi L, Jonson-Reid M, Plax K, Drake B. More Than Poverty: The Effect of Child Abuse and Neglect on Teen Pregnancy Risk. J Adolesc Health. 2015;57(2):164-8. PMCID:PMC4653097  PMID:26206437 
18. Plax K, Garbutt J, Kaushik GN. HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infection Testing Among High-Risk Youths: Supporting Positive Opportunities With Teens (SPOT) Youth Center. Am J Public Health. 2015;105(7):1394-8. PMCID:PMC4463384  PMID:25973833 
19. Baker LM, Paul RH, Heaps JM, Westerhaus E, Chang JY, Williams S, Brier MR, Plax K, Ances BM. Impact of human immunodeficiency virus on neurocognition and risky behaviors in young adults. J Neurovirol. 2014;20(5):466-73. PMCID:PMC4305333  PMID:24970235 
20. Ahmad FA, Jeffe DB, Plax K, Collins KK, Schechtman KB, Doerhoff DE, Garbutt J, Jaffe DM. Computerized self-interviews improve Chlamydia and gonorrhea testing among youth in the emergency department. Ann Emerg Med. 2014;64(4):376-84. PMCID:PMC4156563  PMID:24612901 
21. Kaushik G, Plax KL, Constantino JN, Lewis L, Mamah D. Mental health care utilization at a free drop-in youth center in St. Louis, Missouri. Mo Med. 2012;109(6):475-81. PMID:23362652 
22. Plax K, Seifert RW. Medical debt, health care access, and professional responsibility. Virtual Mentor. 2006;8(3):166-9. doi:10.1001/virtualmentor.2006.8.3.msoc1-0603  PMID:23232350 
23. Sanders LM, Robinson TN, Forster LQ, Plax K, Brosco JP, Brito A. Evidence-based community pediatrics: building a bridge from bedside to neighborhood. Pediatrics. 2005;115(4 Suppl):1142-7. PMID:15821298