Informatics is essential to the conduct of clinical and translational research. Informatics methods and software tools are now present at every stage in the translational pipeline, from the discovery of potential targets to the delivery of evidence-based solutions at the point of care. The Informatics Core at the Clinical and Translational Science Center (CTSC) at Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM) has a long track-record of success in providing tools and services to support the conduct, management and evaluation of research. We were one of ten initial sites to join the REDCap consortium, and have deployed the software throughout WCM and our partner institutions. We have established a sustainable and scalable architecture to make data from electronic health records (EHR) available to researchers. This architecture enables researchers to import EHR data directly into REDCap forms, and also feeds i2b2 (Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside), to facilitate identification of patient cohorts for studies. At the regional level, WCM leads the New York City Clinical Data Research Network (CDRN), extending cohort discovery capabilities beyond institutional boundaries and stimulating many new cross-institutional collaborations. At the national level, the WCM CTSC leads the development and dissemination of WebCAMP to dozens of institutions to streamline investigator access to services, support research cost-sharing, and facilitate the centralized tracking and reporting of research outcomes at their CTSAs.
Engage investigators and trainees to incorporate informatics solutions into their research, and train them to ensure usage is efficient and effective.In general, the Infomatics Core aims to:
- Collect biomedical data from many sources and integrate into new forms to facilitate research.
- Provide infrastructure to help investigators share data in a secure manner and analyze their data using advanced computational tools.
- Enhance infrastructure for CTSC tracking and workflow to ensure operational efficiency and alignment with national initiatives.
