A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa
Technological advances now make it possible to generate diverse, complex and varying sizes of data in a wide range of applications from business to engineering to medicine. In the health sciences, in particular, data are being produced at an unprecedented rate across the full spectrum of scientific...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.710961/full |
| _version_ | 1818695627501993984 |
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| author | Joseph Beyene Solomon W. Harrar Mekibib Altaye Tessema Astatkie Tadesse Awoke Ziv Shkedy Tesfaye B. Mersha |
| author_facet | Joseph Beyene Solomon W. Harrar Mekibib Altaye Tessema Astatkie Tadesse Awoke Ziv Shkedy Tesfaye B. Mersha |
| author_sort | Joseph Beyene |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Technological advances now make it possible to generate diverse, complex and varying sizes of data in a wide range of applications from business to engineering to medicine. In the health sciences, in particular, data are being produced at an unprecedented rate across the full spectrum of scientific inquiry spanning basic biology, clinical medicine, public health and health care systems. Leveraging these data can accelerate scientific advances, health discovery and innovations. However, data are just the raw material required to generate new knowledge, not knowledge on its own, as a pile of bricks would not be mistaken for a building. In order to solve complex scientific problems, appropriate methods, tools and technologies must be integrated with domain knowledge expertise to generate and analyze big data. This integrated interdisciplinary approach is what has become to be widely known as data science. Although the discipline of data science has been rapidly evolving over the past couple of decades in resource-rich countries, the situation is bleak in resource-limited settings such as most countries in Africa primarily due to lack of well-trained data scientists. In this paper, we highlight a roadmap for building capacity in health data science in Africa to help spur health discovery and innovation, and propose a sustainable potential solution consisting of three key activities: a graduate-level training, faculty development, and stakeholder engagement. We also outline potential challenges and mitigating strategies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-17T13:48:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-35f835cb0e69499588787ee62c04898e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T13:48:29Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-35f835cb0e69499588787ee62c04898e2022-12-21T21:46:06ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652021-10-01910.3389/fpubh.2021.710961710961A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in AfricaJoseph Beyene0Solomon W. Harrar1Mekibib Altaye2Tessema Astatkie3Tadesse Awoke4Ziv Shkedy5Tesfaye B. Mersha6Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, CanadaDr. Bing Zhang Department of Statistics, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United StatesDepartment of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United StatesFaculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, NS, CanadaDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Gondar, Gondar, EthiopiaI-BioStat, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, BelgiumDepartment of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United StatesTechnological advances now make it possible to generate diverse, complex and varying sizes of data in a wide range of applications from business to engineering to medicine. In the health sciences, in particular, data are being produced at an unprecedented rate across the full spectrum of scientific inquiry spanning basic biology, clinical medicine, public health and health care systems. Leveraging these data can accelerate scientific advances, health discovery and innovations. However, data are just the raw material required to generate new knowledge, not knowledge on its own, as a pile of bricks would not be mistaken for a building. In order to solve complex scientific problems, appropriate methods, tools and technologies must be integrated with domain knowledge expertise to generate and analyze big data. This integrated interdisciplinary approach is what has become to be widely known as data science. Although the discipline of data science has been rapidly evolving over the past couple of decades in resource-rich countries, the situation is bleak in resource-limited settings such as most countries in Africa primarily due to lack of well-trained data scientists. In this paper, we highlight a roadmap for building capacity in health data science in Africa to help spur health discovery and innovation, and propose a sustainable potential solution consisting of three key activities: a graduate-level training, faculty development, and stakeholder engagement. We also outline potential challenges and mitigating strategies.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.710961/fullbig datahealth informaticscapacity buildingknowledge discoverydata scienceAfrica |
| spellingShingle | Joseph Beyene Solomon W. Harrar Mekibib Altaye Tessema Astatkie Tadesse Awoke Ziv Shkedy Tesfaye B. Mersha A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa Frontiers in Public Health big data health informatics capacity building knowledge discovery data science Africa |
| title | A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa |
| title_full | A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa |
| title_fullStr | A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa |
| title_short | A Roadmap for Building Data Science Capacity for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa |
| title_sort | roadmap for building data science capacity for health discovery and innovation in africa |
| topic | big data health informatics capacity building knowledge discovery data science Africa |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.710961/full |
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