Data Science for Precision Health NLM T15 Training
The Institute for Precision Health and the Department of Computational Medicine is pleased to announce the Biomedical Data Science Training Program for Precision Health Equity. The program is funded by the National Library of Medicine (T15LM013976) for five years, starting July 1, 2022. Funding for both predoctoral trainees and postdoctoral trainees are available.
The program combines didactic training in computational and statistical methods for large-scale analyses involving biomedical data (e.g., multi-omics; electronic health records, EHRs). Trainees will acquire breadth in biomedical informatics and data science, as well as targeted learning in specific topics around equity, bioethics, and precision health. A team science-based approach is taken throughout the learning experience. All trainees will have a mentorship team that co-supervises them through a research experience in precision health. The mentorship team will pair the trainee with at least one faculty with a computational background and at least one other with a clinical background in the relevant area of the project. The training program will foster a diverse, interdisciplinary environment for a new generation of scientists to learn to invent and develop the computational approaches and tools that deliver on the promise of precision health for everyone.
Our program synthesizes elements across four foci, providing each student an understanding of core topics in each area:
Healthcare/clinical informatics. The intersection of clinical informatics and precision health involves the development, evaluation, and translation of methods using the electronic health record (EHR) for deep phenotyping; using artificial intelligence (AI)-based methods to individually-tailor clinical decision support; digital health platforms for communicating information to patients (e.g., return of results); as well as targeted types of analysis (e.g., radiomics, mHealth).
Translational bioinformatics. The genesis of modern precision medicine came with the Human Genome Project and newfound ability to analyze individual sequences. Precision health now embraces computational methods in an ever-widening (multi-)omics space; the development of polygenic risk scores to guide personalized decisions regarding diagnosis and treatment; and the connection between molecular and phenotyping presentation.
Clinical research informatics. The power of precision health stems from our ability to conduct analysis on big data, uncovering new patterns across high-dimensional datasets that mix observational data types over time. The computational complexity of these analyses drives new algorithms and biostatistical approaches, not only for improved scalability/efficiency but also to address bias detection and issues around reproducibility.
Public health informatics. Precision health and computational epidemiology methods are increasingly synergistic, providing more refined insights to public health agencies to formulate better policies (e.g., optimizing resource allocation); and an understanding of how data-driven analyses at the individual level can help to overcome health disparities and influence global health research.
For more information, contact Stacey Beggs, Program Manager in the Department of Computational Medicine: sbeggs@mednet.ucla.edu