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 two 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.
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.
Biomedical informatics
Bill Hogan, M.D.
Dr. Hogan is director of the HOBI’s Division of Biomedical Informatics. He is also director of Biomedical Informatics for the UF Clinical and Translational Science Institute and director of informatics for the statewide OneFlorida+ Clinical Research Network.
Health Outcomes and implementation science
Stephanie Staras, Ph.D.
Dr. Staras is an associate professor and director of HOBI’s Division of Health Outcomes and Implementation Science. She also serves as director of precision public health at the UF Clinical and Translational Science Institute (UF CTSI) and is a member of the UF Health Cancer Center.
Director of graduate education
Carma Bylund, Ph.D.
Dr. Bylund is a professor and director of graduate education at HOBI. She also serves as
the education and training liaison for the Cancer Control and Population Sciences Program at the UF Health Cancer Center, and as a UF Trust Consortium Scholar with the UF Consortium on Trust and Media in Technology.
administrative support
Meet HOBI's Administrative Support Team
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