View Larger Image (L-R) Nishank Jain, M.D., M.P.H., Margarete Kulik, Ph.D., M.Sc., and Yasir Rahmatallah, Ph.D., were selected as the inaugural class of Data Scholars.
(L-R) Nishank Jain, M.D., M.P.H., Margarete Kulik, Ph.D., M.Sc., and Yasir Rahmatallah, Ph.D., were selected as the inaugural class of Data Scholars.

Translational Research Institute Announces Inaugural Class of Data Scholars

By David Robinson

| The Translational Research Institute has selected three Data Scholars for its inaugural 2020-21 class.

The institute’s Data Scholars Program supports UAMS faculty in learning and applying the principles and methods of data analytics and data sciences to inform clinical practice and policy. Scholars will pursue formal course work in addition to mentoring during their data-driven research project.

The scholars and their project titles are:

Nishank Jain, M.D., M.P.H., Assistant Professor, College of Medicine, “Predictors of Bleeding in Patients on Chronic Dialysis on P2Y12 inhibitors (PREDICT BLEED study)”

Margarete Kulik, Ph.D., M.Sc., M.A., Assistant Professor, College of Public Health, “Using (Arkansas) All-Payer Claims Data to examine utilization and prescription patterns of tobacco cessation treatments among Medicaid enrollees in Arkansas”

Yasir Rahmatallah, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, College of Medicine, “Temporal trajectory analysis promotes data-driven knowledge extraction and identifies critical intervention points to disrupt disease progression pathways”

“We had a diverse, competitive pool of 10 applicants, and I am very excited about the three who were chosen,” said Brad Martin, Pharm.D., Ph.D., a professor in the UAMS College of Pharmacy who led the launch of the program for TRI.

A study section (group) of seven UAMS faculty reviewers selected the scholars.

The data scholars will receive 20% salary support and reimbursement for tuition and fees up to $5,000 per year starting July 1, 2020. They will also receive close mentoring from UAMS TRI faculty and staff in developing their research projects using existing UAMS data resources such as the UAMS Arkansas Clinical Data Repository (AR-CDR), LifeLink, Arkansas All-Payer Claims Database, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project or Veterans Administration data.

The program is supported by the UAMS Translational Research Institute and its Clinical and Translational Science Award, grant TL1 TR003109.