Dartmouth has been awarded a $3-million grant from the National Science Foundation for the Trustworthy Information Systems for Healthcare project, an initiative aimed at creating secure computer systems to manage healthcare information, the College announced on Wednesday.
Funding for the NSF grant came from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the federal stimulus package passed in February, according to the NSF's web site. The Dartmouth previously reported that the NSF received an additional $2.5 billion from the stimulus package to expand funding for science research projects.
The project's main goals include designing a system to keep health information secure while allowing health professionals to access data, according to a College press release, while also providing health professionals more flexibility in accessing a patient's information for example, by making data available by cell phone.
One of the major hurdles for the project is that very little healthcare information is currently stored and transmitted electronically, Denise Anthony, team member and associate professor of sociology, said in an interview with The Dartmouth on Wednesday. An important first step for the group is designing an electronic records system that is both secure and useable to the many disparate individuals involved in health care.
"When we talk about health information, it isn't just what doctors do with it," Anthony said. "It's also, as new technologies enable patients to monitor aspects of their health... How will that feed into that electronic health record? Who is responsible for protecting that information?"
The project combines researchers from multiple College departments, including computer science and sociology, the Dartmouth Medical School and the Tuck School of Business. Upper Valley organizations will also be involved, including the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in White River Junction, Vt., and The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, according to the team's web site.
The union of several of the parties involved in providing health care is intended to allow the team to balance both the needs of those providing treatment, while maintaining the integrity of the medical data, team member Andrew Gettinger said in the release.
Collaboration among researchers developing health information technologies, as well as others making technologies usable in professional settings and feasible from an economic standpoint, is necessary to meet the complex needs presented by the health care system, Anthony told The Dartmouth.
"We don't think you're going to be able to come up with an adequate solution unless you have this multidisciplinary, collaborative approach," Anthony said.
While the grant will allow some new projects to be launched, Anthony said it will also extend the reach of several research and collaborative projects that are already underway. The additional funding will allow for expanded consultation with professionals around the country, in addition to those at Dartmouth, she added.
Funds will also be allocated for the hiring of new staff to assist the projects, as well as a workshop planned for this winter to unite distant experts in computer science, health policy and clinical practice, Anthony said.
Article first posted August 5, 2009 at 11:41 a.m.
