The School of Medicine recently announced that Philip R.O. Payne, PhD, director of the Institute for Informatics at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named associate dean for health information and data science, and chief data scientist for the School of Medicine.
As associate dean, Dr. Payne will oversee the Institute for Informatics with its newly incorporated team from the Division of Biostatistics, as well as the Bernard Becker Medical Library and the Office of the Chief Research Information Officer. This represents an alignment of critical units across the School of Medicine that are integral to a modern health-care system and top-tier academic health center.
Since Dr. Payne arrived at Washington University in 2016, he and the Institute for Informatics have been strong advocates for a closer partnership between the institute and the library. In 2018, a new library division, Data and Research Computing, was formed as a direct result of this partnership, and further collaborations have ensued.
In Dr. Payne’s words,
“The history of the most successful Biomedical Informatics research and educational programs, both here at Washington University, and more broadly, across the country, has been defined by deep and sustained collaboration between Biomedical Informaticians, Data Scientists, and Medical Librarians. By building upon the existing and highly productive partnership between the Becker Medical Library and the Institute for Informatics, we will be able to enhance the role of School of Medicine as a leader in innovative approaches to data, information, and knowledge-driven research, education, and care delivery. It is a privilege to have the opportunity to work with each and every member of the Becker Medical Library team to realize this exciting vision for our organization and for the communities we serve.”