—
It seems like a simple idea: Take all the information collected for a group of patients and a disease, put it into a computer and look for patterns.
In the reality of a complicated, multifaceted health-care system with many built-in privacy safeguards, this represents a problem that researchers have wrestled with for years.
But Windber Research Institute’s information technology team has tapped into its expertise in medical research to develop a system that has gained international recognition.
“We are fortunate to have forged a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, scientists, software developers, and biomedical informaticians to meet the data gathering and analysis challenges,” said Hai Hu, Windber’s senior director of biomedical informatics.
The Windber-developed system is featured in the current issue of the Journal of Biomedical Informatics.
“DW4TR: A Data Warehouse for Translational Research” describes the integration of data from many sources, improving the link between laboratory results and patient care.
The paper was published jointly by Windber Research Institute and the medical software solutions company, IDBS of Guildford, England.
“Our vision was to develop a system that integrated all of the different kinds of data collected from all the modalities,” Hu said.
Windber’s system was originally developed to support its research as part of the Clinical Breast Cancer Project with Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
Click here to subscribe to The Tribune-Democrat print edition.
Click here to subscribe to The Tribune-Democrat e-edition.
Beryl Makes Landfall on Florida Coast
Service Dogs Help Wash. Soldiers Battling PTSD
Raw Video: Heckler Bursts in on Blair Testimony
Japan Farmers Plant, Seek Radiation-free Rice
UN Blames Syrian Forces for Shelling Houla
Raw Video: Gay Protest Blocked in Moscow
Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
