about us health outcomes and biomedical informatics
At HOBI, we conduct innovative research and leverage data to promote population health, improve health care delivery and outcomes, advance health research, and address health disparities.
UF HOBI
The frontier of data-driven health research
Our diverse, multidisciplinary faculty includes health services researchers, epidemiologists, biomedical informaticians, economists, epidemiologists, psychologists and social scientists. They provide leadership and expertise in prevention science, health promotion, policy evaluation research, quality of care, health disparities, data analytics and implementation science. The department is also the home of the UF Institute for Child Health Policy, which conducts innovative studies and intervention trials to promote the health of children, adolescents and young adults.
The department has three major research divisions:
Health Outcomes and Implementation Science: Health outcomes researchers use medical records, insurance databases, patient questionnaires and other data to evaluate the overall effectiveness of medical treatments or health interventions, including clinical outcomes, financial impact and patient-reported quality-of-life and satisfaction. Implementation science involves the study of methods to promote the successful integration of research findings and evidence into health care policy and practice. When developing these methods, researchers often engage patients and providers to ensure that their needs and preferences are considered. Stakeholder engagement improves compliance with treatment regimens and prevention interventions.
Biomedical Informatics: Defined as “the study of information at the intersection of computer science, biology and health,” biomedical informatics is the new frontier of health research. The biomedical informatics team at HOBI asks critical questions about the very nature of data and its integrity in an effort to leverage the ever-increasing amount of health data available today to improve health outcomes, health care delivery and health policy.
Clinical and Population Health Integration: This division conducts clinical and population-based research that integrates biomedical informatics and implementation sciences while supporting educational programs that improve health outcomes across the lifespan. With a team approach, it supports large, interdisciplinary projects and medical interventions in patients intended to improve public health.
Our faculty are recognized for their leadership and service in state and national organizations such as the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the National Institutes of Health, and the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA). HOBI faculty also hold major leadership roles in the UF Clinical and Translational Science Institute, the UF Institute for Child Health Policy, the UF Health Cancer Center, and the OneFlorida+ Clinical Research Network.
Our annual extramural funding portfolio includes current funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration—Maternal and Child Health Bureau, the State of Florida, State of Texas, and the National Cancer Institute.
Hobi Administration
Department chair
Elizabeth Shenkman, Ph.D.
Dr. Shenkman is the chair of HOBI, co-director of the UF Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI), director of UF’s Institute for Child Health Policy, and associate director for community outreach and engagement for the UF Health Cancer Center.
Director
Ricky Whitney
Ricky Whitney is the Director for Administrative Services of HOBI.
Associate Chair
Stephanie Staras, Ph.D.
Dr. Staras is the Associate Chair of Faculty Development. She supports the mentoring of HOBI faculty and works closely with HOBI’s leadership team on strategies to create a range of faculty development initiatives that support our mission areas of research, teaching, and service.
Associate Chair
Carma Bylund, Ph.D.
Dr. Bylund serves as Associate Chair of Education. She provides leadership on strategic educational initiatives, including improving student experience and success. She is HOBI’s liaison to the College of Medicine’s new Quality and Patient Safety Initiative.
Division Director
Jiang Bian, Ph.D.
Dr. Bian is the Division Director of Biomedical Informatics and Data Science (BMI). He is also the Chief Data Scientist, and Chief Research Information Officer, for UF Health. As a division director, he collaborates with other leaders within HOBI and across the university to advance HOBI’s mission areas of research, teaching and service. Dr. Bian will support HOBI faculty and staff members to achieve existing goals and new initiatives.
Division Director
Todd Manini, Ph.D.
Dr. Manini is the Division Director of Clinical and Population Health Integration. This division supports multi-disciplinary and population level approaches. He support the Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center at HOBI. He also directs an NIH postdoctoral training program focused on Translational Research on Aging and Mobility.
Division Director
Ramzi G. Salloum, Ph.D.
Dr. Salloum is Division Director of Health Outcomes and Implementation Science (HOIS). He helps experts apply innovative methods and approaches to translate evidence-based practices into real world clinical and population health settings to achieve health equity. Dr. Salloum also serves as the Director of the UF CTSI Learning Health System Program. He will provide leadership for the division’s degree and certificate programs and for its robust research portfolio.
Video from UF Health
administrative support
HOBI's Administrative Support
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