Pittsburgh Biomedical Informatics Training Program

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The University of Pittsburgh proposes a five-year renewal of its training program in Biomedical Informatics. This program has grown significantly since its inception in 1987. It currently has 40 trainees, 12 of whom are supported by the training grant. Trainees seek academic degrees through one of two programs. The majority of students obtain degrees through the Biomedical Informatics (BMI) Training Program, which is offered through the School of Medicine. Most trainees study in the general BMI degree track. In addition, the program has concentrations in bioinformatics, dental informatics, health services research, library informatics, and public health surveillance for trainees with those special interests. Students with a special interest in artificial intelligence in medicine can obtain degrees through the Biomedical Informatics track of the Intelligent Systems Program (ISP). Both the BMI Training Program and the ISP offer M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. The BMI Training Program also offers a one-year Certificate option. Since the BMI and ISP training programs are tightly linked and coordinated through their faculty and staff, for brevity we refer to them as one program below. Graduates of the program are finding excellent employment opportunities. The program is supported by an interdepartmental core faculty with 30 members, all of whom are experienced educators and active researchers. It is administered through the University's Center for Biomedical Informatics (CBMI), which provides administrative support, space, and equipment for the trainees. A tightly knit leadership/ administrative group of two co-directors and three very experienced staff members supports the program director in the overall operation of the program. We request 19 full-time funded training positions per year for the period 2007-2012, which maintains the current number of library informatics trainees at two, maintains the number of dental informatics trainees also at two, and increases the number of "uncategorical" positions from 11 to 15. We are requesting this increase in positions in anticipation of CBMI becoming a Department of the Biomedical Informatics (DBMI) in 2006, leading to the hiring of five new faculty members over the next five years. The larger DBMI faculty will be able to provide mentoring for the requested increase in NLM-funded trainees. We will continue to recruit students with a wide range of backgrounds and interests, with a special emphasis on recruiting trainees from disadvantaged backgrounds.