Meet Our Team!
Years of Experience
The Adolescent Medicine unit in the Department of Pediatrics has been counseling young adults and treating HIV positive clients for more than 2 decades. Get the best help available!
From All Over the World
Our team members come from different countries across 5 continents and together speak 6 languages fluently including English, Spanish, French, Russian, Creole, and Arabic. Click on the continents below and learn about the diverse backgrounds of our team.
Medical Professionals
Lawrence B. Friedman M.D.
Dr. Friedman earned his MD degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and completed Pediatrics residency and Adolescent Medicine fellowship at Jackson Memorial Hospital and the University of Miami. He is Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, and has maintained a faculty appointment since 1985. Health care of teenagers and young adults, as well as their transition to adult specialty services, fall within his medical purview. Teaching of students from a variety of professional disciplines about primary medical care, health research involving youth, consent and confidentiality precepts for the age group, growth and developmental influences, communication and engagement, sexuality and sexual identification, and medical morbidities remain active interests. He is a recognized expert in the care of youth generally, and those HIV-infected particularly, as designated by the Florida Department of Health and its Children’s Medical Services program.
Donna Maturo
Donna Maturo has been a pediatric nurse practitioner for over 22 years with 20 of those years here at the University of Miami dedicated to adolescents living with and at risk for HIV. She’s a proud Miami native and a suffering Miami Dolphins fan!
Adolescent Counseling & Testing Services Clinic (ACTS)
The Team
Alex Moreno
Gretchen Mills
Gretchen has worked with ACTS for several years focusing on research-based community interventions through Connect to Protect. She partnered with grassroots youth programs, BFREE, to promote safer sex behavior changes in high-risk youth. She also served as the first HIV+ linkage to care coordinator for adolescents in Miami-Dade County. After leaving the Divison, she joined the UM OB/GYN Department as a clinical care coordinator for survivors of human trafficking. She was also a part of the UM Gastroenterology team at the Crohns and Colitis Center.
Previous Employees
Michelle Berkovich
Michelle Berkovich has been working in the ACTS clinic as an Outreach coordinator & counselor since January 2018. She is currently completing her last year at UM. Michelle is majoring in nursing and she wants to work with babies in the future, specifically in the NICU. Michelle speaks fluent Russian because her parents are both immigrants from Belarus and she is a first generation American.
Frantzia Jeanty
Frantzia Jeanty is a student worker for ACTS. She is currently a senior attending the University of Miami, majoring in Health Science and minoring in Chemistry. She seeks to become a travelling doctor who serves underserved communities around the world. Frantzia is Haitian descent and speaks 3 languages.
Faraah Bekheet
Faraah Bekheet is a clinical program coordinator and counselor for ACTS. She has been with the clinic for over two years and conducts counseling, outreach, testing and clinic expansion. She graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry & Economics. Faraah took an interest in adolescent medicine because of her interest in public health and education. She is planning to attend medical school next fall.
Chelsea Chico
Chelsea Chico has been involved with the ACTS clinic as a Outreach coordinator & counselor since January 2017. She just graduated the University of Miami with a Bachelor’s degree in Biology. Chelsea wants to further her studies in the medical field in hope she can make a difference in someone’s life. One fun fact about Chelsea is that she enjoys making art in her free time.
Special Adolescent Clinic (SAC)
Allam Garcia
My name is Allam Garcia and I work as a Patient Navigator in the Special Adolescent Clinic here at the Division of Adolescent Medicine. I have been with the clinic for over five years. I provide intensive one-on-one patient counseling and education regarding medication adherence, clinic attendance and provide support for issues related to their current life situations. I help new patients enroll into medical care and assist with communication between the patient and providers. Working with the clinic has also given me the opportunity to assist the Adolescent Counseling & Testing Services with HIV counseling and testing throughout the community and in high schools.
Peggy Renaud
Peggy Renaud is the Medical Case Worker for Adolescent Medicine. She has been working for the University of Miami since 2006. Peggy started working in the HIV/AIDS field at the age of 14. She has a Bachelors Degree in Health Service Administration, Nursing, and Gerontology.
Florianne Renaud
Florianne Renaud is a recent addition to the ACTS team as a Program Coordinator as of March 2018. Though she is new to the team, she is no stranger to the HIV/AIDS epidemic here in South Florida. Growing up in Miami in a Haitian household, she has always been aware of the epidemic and the at-risk communities. Motivated by the lack of information, she received growing up, she is dedicated to increasing efforts of outreach and educating Miami’s affected communities. When she is not working, you can find her traveling, reading, and binge-watching British reality TV shows.