QUIPU: The Andrean Global Health Informatics Research and Training Center

描述(申请人提供)：这项建议的总体目标是建立“基普：安第斯全球卫生信息学研究和培训中心”，这是一个全球卫生信息学(GHI)培训和研究的卓越中心，作为一个枢纽，满足安第斯地区(AR)国家和地区对高质量培训的需求，费用只有美国类似培训计划的一小部分。该建议的具体目标是：1.在安第斯地区内开发和实施GHI的短期和长期培训机会；2.让新兴的研究人员参与卫生信息学和生物信息学的地区性相关研究；以及3.扩大和巩固一个研究网络，将AR的研究人员联系起来，促进南南合作，以及与美国合作大学和其他机构的同事合作。该中心将由秘鲁利马的佩鲁阿纳·卡耶塔诺·赫雷迪亚大学(UPCH)和美国海军医学研究中心支队(NMRCD)、哥伦比亚的考卡大学(UCA)和厄瓜多尔的安迪纳·西蒙·玻利瓦尔大学(UASB)以及华盛顿大学(UW)扩大；他们将作为一个联合体共同努力，共同实施基普。拟议的计划建立在四个机构之间现有的和新出现的合作基础上，以及UPCH和UW之间通过NIH-Fogarty资助的项目长期以培训为中心的合作，这使得UPCH和秘鲁培养了一大批训练有素的研究人员。我们设想GHI将成为一把保护伞，将健康信息学和生物信息学整合到临床、生物医学和行为研究问题中，这些问题是促进AR和全球人口健康的关键。拟议的方案包括培训和研究部分。培训部分将提供课程、两个证书课程(健康信息学和生物信息学)，以及为高级学生提供的硕士和博士课程。我们计划在5年内提供12个短期课程奖学金，11个证书奖学金，14个硕士奖学金和2个博士学位奖学金。候选人将从安第斯国家中挑选，重点是哥伦比亚、厄瓜多尔和秘鲁。视频会议和基于互联网的课程将被用来扩大到更广泛的学生群体。卫生信息学研究部分将通过提供有竞争力的研究奖项、已建立的研究项目中的机会以及与合作机构网络中的其他研究人员的链接，包括区域研究会议，来加强NIH和非NIH资助的在该区域进行的研究。 公共卫生相关性：在南美洲，安第斯地区(AR)处境最不利。然而，计算机、移动电话和其他信息和通信技术(信通技术)等现代技术正在该区域变得越来越普遍。信息学和全球公共卫生领域都在增长，但我们缺乏制度化的努力来培训专业人员，以便在区域需求的背景下将信息和通信技术应用于全球卫生问题，并培养能够将信息学与卫生研究联系起来的卫生信息技术专家。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The overarching goal of this proposal is to establish the "QUIPU: Andean Global Health Informatics Research and Training Center," a center of excellence for training and research in global health informatics (GHI) to serve as a hub for addressing the national and regional needs for high-quality training in the Andean Region (AR) at a fraction of the cost of similar training programs in the U.S. The specific aims of the proposal are: 1. To develop and implement short-term and long-term training opportunities in GHI within the AR; 2. To engage emerging investigators in regionally pertinent research in health informatics and bioinformatics; and 3. To expand and consolidate a research network to link researchers in the AR, promoting south^south collaborations, as well as with colleagues from partner universities in the U.S. and other institutions. The Center will expand from the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH) and the U.S. Naval Medical Research Center Detachment (NMRCD) in Lima, Peru, two universities from the AR, the Universidad del Cauca (UCA) in Colombia and the Universidad Andina Simon Bolivar (UASB) in Ecuador, and the University of Washington (UW); who will work together as a Consortium to collaboratively implement QUIPU. The proposed program builds on existing and emerging collaborations between the four institutions, as well as a long-standing training-centered collaboration between UPCH and UW through NIH-Fogarty funded programs which allowed the development of a critical mass of trained researchers at UPCH and in Peru. We envision GHI as an umbrella for integrating health informatics and bioinformatics into clinical, biomedical and behavioral research issues that are key to advancing the health of populations in the AR and around the globe. The proposed program includes training and a research component. The training component will offer courses, two Certificate programs (health informatics and bioinformatics), as well as Masters and PhD programs for advanced students. We plan to offer 12 scholarships for short courses, 11 for Certificates, 14 for Masters and 2 for PhD degrees during the 5-year grant. Candidates will be selected from Andean countries with a focus on Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Video conferences and internet-based courses will be used to expand availability to a broader pool of students. The component for research in health informatics will strengthen NIH and non-NIH funded research conducted in the region, by providing competitive research awards, opportunities within already established research projects, and links to other researchers within the networks of collaborating institutions, including a regional research conference. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Within South America, the Andean Region (AR) is the most disadvantaged. However, modern technology such as computers, cellular phones, and other information and communications technologies (ICT) are becoming more widely available in the region. The fields of informatics and global public health are both growing, but we lack an institutionalized effort to train professionals to apply ICT to global health issues in the context of regional needs and to develop health information technology experts capable of linking informatics with health research.