BIC TRAIN - Biomedical Informatics COVID-19 Training

Project SummaryFor Parent Grant: Harvard Biomedical Informatics and Data Science Research Training (BIRT) program, April 2016.This proposal for the Harvard Biomedical Informatics and Data Science Research Training (BIRT) programrecognizes that the field of biomedical informatics is an increasingly relevant, if not essential, field for medicineand research in the health sciences. The practice of clinical care and biomedical investigation each constitutecomplex enterprises that are dependent on the mastery of enormous data streams. There is a crucial need fortrained individuals who are able to integrate, interpret, and act upon the large-scale, high-throughput, andcomplex data that are generated in the course of biomedical research and the practice of medicine. The primaryaim of this proposal is to contribute to the cadre of highly trained independent and successful researchers inthe field of biomedical informatics.This proposal builds on the strengths of our many years of National Library of Medicine (NLM) fellowshiptraining. The current proposed program will be overseen and administered by the Department of BiomedicalInformatics at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and will involve collaboration with faculty at HMS and itsaffiliated hospitals, including Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Brigham andWomen's Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition, theprogram will work closely with other Harvard University Schools in the university-wide data scienceinitiative, and, in particular, with its Data Science Education Working Group, of which the proposed PI is amember. We meet all requirements of the current NLM RFA, which focuses on those informatics areas thatdirectly pertain to health-related application domains. The breadth and depth of our research laboratories,real-world clinical systems, research activities, academic programs, and experienced faculty provide anoutstanding environment to mentor and instruct trainees in all four of the NLM-identified focus areas -healthcare informatics, translational bioinformatics, clinical research informatics, and public healthinformatics.We request support for a total of fifteen trainees per year: ten at the postdoctoral level and five at thepredoctoral level. In addition, we propose to train four short-term trainees each summer. BIRT trainees workwith internationally recognized faculty on high-profile grants and research projects. The program has a formal,required academic component, which includes the Master's degree for all postdoctoral trainees, and the PhDdegree for all predoctoral students. Trainees' overall progression throughout the training period is closelymonitored. Trainees are regularly evaluated through their course work and through progress on their researchprojects.