Big Data Health Science Center
The University of South Carolina Big Data Health Science Center (BDHSC), a USC Excellence Initiative, serves as a campus-wide interdisciplinary enterprise that conducts cutting-edge research and discovery, offers professional development and academic training, and provides service to the community and industry.
Call for Abstracts: 6th National Big Data Health Science Confernece
The University of South Carolina Big Data Health Science Center invites you to submit abstracts for oral and poster presentations at the 6th National Big Data Health Science Conference, to be held February 13-14, 2025, in Columbia, SC.
Abstracts must be responsive to the theme “Unlocking the Power of Big Data in Health: Transforming Data into Actionable Intelligence.” Abstracts may be research- or program-based, regardless of presentation format.
Authors will have the option of publishing their abstract in the 2025 Conference Proceedings (with Biomedical Central, a part of Springer Nature) at no cost. The deadline for submission is November 29th, 2024, by COB.
Now Accepting Applications for the BDHSC’s 4th Annual NIH-funded T35 Summer Research Training Program
Applications for the NIH-funded program are now open to US citizens, US non-citizen nationals, and lawful permanent residents who have completed at least 1 year in their master’s or pre-dissertation doctoral programs in the physical/quantitative sciences. This is an 11-week, full-time intensive course-based training program to work alongside established clinical scientists on one or more Big Data Health-related studies. In addition to formal classroom training (at no cost to the student), each student will receive accommodations and a stipend to be involved in a specific research project, actively participating in a hands-on manner in a research laboratory alongside a diverse array of well-known established researchers currently conducting studies related to Big Data Health Science.
BDHSC Featured: R25 Big Data Health Science c-Scholar Program Success Leads to Additional Funding, Cohorts
When the USC Big Data Health Science Center (BDHSC) envisioned a community-scholar program to train practitioners in the use of data science in their health-related work, their goal was to make it a long-term initiative. Last fall, they enacted phase one of this effort by launching a one-year pilot program funded by $100,000 administrative supplement from the National Institutes of Health.
“This innovative [R25] program, along with other NIH-funded training programs, demonstrates the leadership and commitment of the University of South Carolina in developing a diverse workforce to improve the health and well-being of South Carolinians,” says Julius Fridriksson, USC’s Vice President for Research.
Recent News
Annual BDHSC Retreat to be Held September 27th
The BDHSC Retreat is an annual event hosted by the BDHSC. Guests can expect to connect with USC leadership and representatives from government agencies and community partners; identify opportunities for collaboration with faculty engaged in Big Data research; and network via round table discussions and a networking luncheon. Pre-registration for this event is required.
BDHSC Featured: Big Data Health Science Center Brings Big Minds, Big Ideas
The human body is so complex that it’s estimated every person generates two terabytes of data every day. If health care experts could gather and study that data, they could pinpoint ways for people and communities to be healthier. The biggest problem — two terabytes per person is too much data. Because data will play such a large role in the future of health care, the University of South Carolina launched the Big Data Health Science Center in 2019. The center held its fifth annual Big Data Health Science Conference in February, which attracted almost 100 presenters from five countries and 269 attendees. This was the first year the conference was partially sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.
4th Cohort of R25 Big Data Health Science Faculty Fellows Announced
We’re excited to announce the 2024 R25 Fellows who will join the NIAID-funded R25 Big Data Health Science Fellow Program. As part of the BDHSC’s professional development mission, the Big Data Fellow program is designed to address these gaps and promote big data health science research at USC. Representing three different academic colleges/schools, the 2024 fellows include Pieter Baker (Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics), Hui Chen (Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences), Lelia Larson (Assistant Professor of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior), Parthenia Luke (Research Assistant Professor, College of Social Work), Yuan Wang (Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics), and Yanfeng Xu (Assistant Professor, College of Social Work). Since 2021, a total of 20 junior faculty fellows have joined the Big Data Health Science Fellow Program. Learn more about our fellows, their mentors, and their proposed research.
The BDHSC Welcomes its 2024 Cohort for the Third Annual T35 Summer Research Training Program for Infectious Diseases
The University of South Carolina (USC) Big Data Health Science Center (BDHSC) welcomes the 2024 cohort of its third annual Big Data Health Science Summer Research Training Program for Infectious Diseases. This NIH-funded training program is designed to introduce master’s and pre-dissertation doctoral students to the challenges and excitement of data science research by providing a mentored summer research experience with the aim of inspiring trainees toward academic careers that incorporate biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research. In addition to mentored research and formal classroom training (at no cost to the student), each student will receive funding and travel support to publish and present their research at national and local conferences.
Recent & Upcoming Events
Vector-Borne Diseases in Colombia: Current Situation of Dengue Fever and Chagas Disease and the Potential use of Big Data in the Solution of these Problems
October 9, 2024
2025 National Big Data Health Science Conference Abstract Submission Deadline
November 29, 2024
2025 National Big Data Health Science Student Case Competition
February 7-9, 2025
6th National Big Data Health Science Conference 2024
February 13-14, 2025
Deadline to apply for T35 Training Program
February 18, 2025
Deadline to apply for R25 Emerging Scholars Training Program
March 3. 2025
Funding for this conference was made possible (in part) by R13LM014347 from the National Library of Medicine. The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services; nor does mention by trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
The scopes of the projects range from investigating the different ways that COVID-19 impacts people; making better predictions of COVID-19; designing telehealth services and technology innovations for the future; and engaging cutting-edge methods through artificial intelligence, data science, computational methods and statistical modeling.
NIH Grant to Develop Data-driven Strategies in Fighting COVID-19
This two-year grant will support the team’s efforts to develop a database system via REDCap and a mobile application for collating surveillance, clinical, multi-omics and geospatial data on both COVID-19 patients and health workers treating COVID-19 patients in South Carolina.
NSF Award for “Monitoring the Spatial Spread of COVID-19 through the Lens of Human Movement using Big Social Media Data”
Three members of the BDHSC have been awarded $108,717 by the National Science Foundation for their project titled “Monitoring the Spatial Spread of COVID-19 through the Lens of Human Movement using Big Social Media Data.”
Internal COVID-19 Research Grants
The UofSC Office of the Vice President for Research recently announced the recipients of its special internal funding initiative to support COVID-19 research and scholarship. BDHSC is pleased to announce that of the 42 projects funded, BDHSC faculty serve as PI for 10 projects and Co-I for 7 different projects.
