The scientific field that deals with the storage, retrieval, sharing, and optimal use of biomedical information, data, and knowledge for problem solving and decision making. Medical informatics touches on all basic and applied fields in biomedical science and is closely tied to modern information technologies, notably in the areas of computing and communication

1. Defining Biomedical Informatics and its
Relationship to Dental Research and Practice
By
SATHISHKUMAR G
(sathishsak111@gmail.com)

2. What is Medical Informatics?
The scientific field that deals with the
storage, retrieval, sharing, and optimal use
of biomedical information, data, and
knowledge for problem solving and
decision making.
Medical informatics touches on all basic
and applied fields in biomedical science
and is closely tied to modern information
technologies, notably in the areas of
computing and communication.

5. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Basic Research
Applied Research
Methods, Techniques, and Theories
Public Health
Clinical
Medicine
Nursing
Veterinary
Medicine
Dentistry
Molecular
Biology
Visualization

6. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Basic Research
Applied Research
Methods, Techniques, and Theories
Public Health
Informatics
Clinical
Medicine
Informatics
Nursing
Informatics
Veterinary
Informatics
Dental
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Imaging
Informatics

7. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Basic Research
Applied Research
Methods, Techniques, and Theories
Public Health
Informatics
Clinical
Medicine
Informatics
Nursing
Informatics
Veterinary
Informatics
Dental
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Imaging
Informatics
ClinicalClinical

8. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Basic Research
Applied Research
Methods, Techniques, and Theories
Public Health
Informatics
Clinical
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Imaging
Informatics
Medical Informatics

9. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Basic Research
Applied Research
Medical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories
Imaging
Informatics
Clinical
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Public Health
Informatics
Molecular and
Cellular
Processes
Tissues and
Organs
Individuals
(Patients)
Populations
And Society

10. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Medical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories
Imaging
Informatics
Clinical
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Public Health
Informatics

11. Medical Informatics in Perspective
Medical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories
Imaging
Informatics
Clinical
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Public Health
Informatics
Bioinformatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories
??
??
Biomedical
??

12. Biomedical Informatics in Perspective
Basic Research
Applied Research
Biomedical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories
Imaging
Informatics
Clinical
Informatics
Bioinformatics
Public Health
Informatics
Molecular and
Cellular
Processes
Tissues and
Organs
Individuals
(Patients)
Populations
And Society

13. Examples of Growing Synergies
Between Clinical and Bio- Informatics
• Applications at the intersection of genetic and
phenotypic data
– e.g., pharmacogenomics
– e.g., identification of patient subgroups
• Shared methodologies with broad applicability
– e.g., natural language and text processing
– e.g., cognitive modeling of human-computer
interaction
– e.g., imaging (organs, biomolecular, 3D)
– e.g., inferring structure from primary data
– e.g., data mining (knowledge extraction) from
large datasets

14. Journal of Biomedical Informatics
• Formerly “Computers and
Biomedical Research”
• Volume 36 in 2003
• Emphasizes
methodologic innovation
rather than applications,
although all innovations
are motivated by applied
biomedical goals

15. Biomedical Informatics in Perspective
Biomedical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories
Applied
Informatics
Biomedical
Domain
Contributes to….
Draws upon….
Computer
Science
Draw upon….
Contribute to...
Decision
Science
Cognitive
Science
Information
Sciences
Management
Sciences
Other
Component
Sciences

16. Core of Biomedical Informatics As
An Academic Discipline
Biomedical
Knowledge
Biomedical
Data
Knowledge
Base
Data
Base
Inferencing
System

17. Biomedical Informatics Research Areas
Biomedical
Knowledge
Biomedical
Data
Knowledge
Base
Inferencing
System
Data
Base
Data
Acquisition
Biomedical
Research
Planning &
Data Analysis
Knowledge
Acquisition
TeachingHuman
Interface
Treatment
Planning
DiagnosisInformation
Retrieval
Model
Development
Image
Generation
Real-time acquisition
Imaging
Speech/language/text
Specialized input devices
Machine learning
Text interpretation
Knowledge engineering

18. Examples from a Recent Columbia
Retreat: Cross Cutting Methodologies
• Natural language and text
processing
• Knowledge representation and
structuring / ontology
development
• Cognitive science in biomedical
informatics
• Data mining
• 3-dimensional modeling

19. Biomedical Informatics in Perspective
Bioinformatics
Structural
Biology,
Genetics,
Molecular
Biology
Contributes to….
Draws upon….
Draw upon….
Contribute to...
Computer
Science,
Decision
Science,
Cognitive
Science,
Information
Sciences,
Management
Sciences
and other
Component
Sciences
Biomedical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories

20. Dental Informatics
• Significant opportunities
for research across the
spectrum of biomedical
informatics application
areas (bioinformatics,
imaging, clinical, public
health)
• Challenges exist that can
help to drive innovation
and scientific
contributions in
biomedical informatics and
in other, non-biomedical,
areas of application

21. Biomedical Informatics in Perspective
Dental
Informatics
Oral
Medicine,
Dentistry,
Craniofacial
Surgery,
Dental
Research
Contributes to….
Draws upon….
Draw upon….
Contribute to...
Computer
Science,
Decision
Science,
Cognitive
Science,
Information
Sciences,
Management
Sciences
and other
Component
Sciences
Biomedical Informatics Methods,
Techniques, and Theories

22. Challenges For Academic Informatics
• Explaining that there are fundamental
research issues in the field in addition
to applications and tool building
• Finding the right mix between
research/training and service
requirements
• Developing and nurturing the diverse
collegial and scientific relationships
typical of an interdisciplinary field

23. Academic Informatics:
Lessons We Have Learned
• Service activities can stimulate new research and
educational opportunities
• Need to have enough depth in faculty to span a
range of skills and professional orientations
• Need to protect students from projects on critical
paths to meeting service requirements
• Institutional support and commitment are crucial
–Financial stability
–Visibility and credibility with colleagues in other
health science departments and schools

24. Training Future
Biomedical Informatics Professionals
The Problem:
There are too few trained
professionals, knowledgeable about
both biomedicine and the component
sciences in biomedical informatics
The Solution:
Formal training in biomedical
informatics, with the definition of a
core discipline and specialized
elective opportunities

25. Curriculum Development
Perspective of our Department of Biomedical Informatics
• Basic objectives: fundamental areas of biomedicine,
computer science and mathematics that are
prerequisites for further study in Biomedical Informatics
• Core objectives: essential skills required by all
Biomedical Informatics students
• General objectives: ability to conduct research and
participate in the educational activities of the field
• Specialized objectives: application of general methods
and theories in at least one of four different areas:
bioinformatics, imaging informatics, clinical informatics,
and public health informatics

26. Biomedical Informatics Disciplines
Biomedical
Informatics
Cognitive Science
& Decision Making
Management
Sciences
Clinical
Topics
Basic Biomedical
Sciences
Epidemiology
And Statistics
Bioengineering
Computer
Science
(hardware)
Computer
Science
(software)

28. Biomedical Informatics Curriculum
Major subject areas:
1. Biomedical Informatics
2. Biomedicine
3. Computer Science
4. Decision and Cognitive Sciences
5. Public Policy and Social Issues

29. 1. Biomedical Informatics Courses
• Computer applications in health care
• Computer-assisted medical decision making
• Bioinformatics (computational biology)
• Biomedical imaging (imaging informatics)
• Programming projects course
• Weekly student seminars (topic review or
research report by students)
• Weekly research colloquium
• Biomedical informatics “civics”

30. Medical
Informatics
Textbook
(2nd
edition)
Springer Verlag - 2000
Biomedical
Informatics
Textbook
(3rd
edition)
Bio
2004?

31. Program Characteristics
Steady-state program size: 45-50 students
– Dental informatics postdocs 3 students
Applications per year: ~130 candidates
Admissions per year: 8-10 students
Principal faculty: 30
Participating and consulting faculty: ~20
Trainees generally supported on a training
grant, as graduate research assistants on
sponsored projects, or as teaching assistants

32. Doctoral Research in Informatics
• Although they are inspired by biomedical
application goals, dissertations in biomedical
informatics must:
–offer methodological innovation, not simply
interesting programming artifacts
–generalize to other domains, within or
outside biomedicine
• Inherently interdisciplinary, biomedical
informatics provides bridging expertise and
opportunities for collaboration between
computer scientists and biomedical
researchers and practitioners

33. Career Paths for Biomedical
Informatics Professionals
• Academic biomedical informatics research and
development, and educational support
• Clinical, administrative, and educational
management
• Operational service management
• Health system chief information officer or
medical/nursing director for information
technology
• Digital library development and implementation
• Corporate research and development
• Biotechnology/pharmaceutical companies

34. Trends
• Creation of several new biomedical informatics
departments or independent academic units
• Reasonably strong job market for graduates of
informatics degree programs
• Government investment in training and research is
reasonably strong, especially for applications and
demonstrations
• Increasing acceptance of biomedical informatics as
an emerging subspecialty area by biomedical
professional societies
• Increasing recognition that biomedical problems can
drive the development of basic theory and
capabilities in information technology research

35. Thank you