Grant Supports Speedy Sorting of Health Records by Phenotype

Wei-Qi Wei , MD, PhD, assistant professor of Biomedical Informatics and scientific director of the Precision Phenotyping Core at the Center for Precision Medicine, has been awarded a four-year, $1.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (grant GM139891) to continue development of high-throughput software for quickly identifying traits of interest, or phenotypes, in electronic health records (EHRs). 

Data mart speeds recruitment for COVID research

The arrival last March of the COVID-19 pandemic in Tennessee presented challenges for the clinical research enterprise at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Prompt recruitment of patients newly diagnosed with COVID-19 into clinical trials was, and remains, a public health imperative with top-level backing from the federal government.

Jessica Ancker Named Vice Chair for Educational Affairs in DBMI

Health informatics expert and educator Jessica Ancker, PhD, MPH, has joined the Department of Biomedical Informatics as vice chair for Educational Affairs. Ancker comes from Weill Cornell Medical College and Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences, where she was an associate professor. 

DBMI Welcomes New Employees

Kevin Johnson, MD, MS, FAAP, FACMI, DBMI Chair, and Elizabeth Brown, DBMI Chief Business Officer would like to extend their welcome to our newest employees who have joined the department: 

William Lancaster, MD, MHA, MS, FAMIA

William
Lancaster
MD
Adjunct Assistant Professor
Department of Biomedical Informatics
Chief Medical Informatics Officer
Baptist Memorial Health Care
Jake.Lancaster@BMHCC.org

Eduardo Ortiz, MD, MPH

Eduardo
Ortiz
MD
Associate Clinical Professor
Department of Medicine
Associate Clinical Professor
Department of Biomedical Informatics
eduardo.ortiz2@va.gov

Jason Karnes, PharmD, PhD

Jason
Karnes
Pharm.D., PhD, BCPS, FAHA
Adjunct Associate Professor
Department of Biomedical Informatics
Director of Scientific Programs
University of Arizona-Banner All of Us Research Program
karnes@pharmacy.arizona.edu

Dr. Karnes' primary area of research interest is cardiovascular and immune pharmacogenomics, specifically investigating the utility of genetic polymorphisms to predict adverse drug reactions. He employs a translational approach to investigate pharmacogenomic associations using observational studies, functional genomics techniques, and eventually prospective clinical trials. his ultimate career goal is to facilitate personalized cardiovascular medicine and genotype-guided prescribing to avoid serious drug toxicities. 

Dr. Karnes also serves as the Director of Scientific Programs for the University of Arizona-Banner All of Us Research Program. He is an author on over 60 peer-reviewed manuscripts and over 30 abstracts presented at national and international meetings. He's active in multiple professional societies including the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, the American Heart Association, and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy. 

He has received support for his research from the American Heart Association, the Flinn Foundation, the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, and the NIH, including R01 and K01 grants from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

Visit Dr. Karnes' faculty website here and laboratory website here for more information. 
Follow Dr. Karnes on Twitter @jasonhkarnes
A full list of publications can be found here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/jason.karnes.1/bibliography/public/

Quinn Wells, PharmD, MD

Quinn
Wells
Pharm.D., MD
Associate Professor
Department of Medicine
Associate Professor
Department of Pharmacology
Associate Professor
Department of Biomedical Informatics