ACADEMIA
NCSA to host workshop on Infectious Disease Informatics
Many individuals are addressing issues of infectious disease in both humans and animals using diverse methods. There are researchers who use powerful supercomputers to model how diseases, such as avian flu, could spread through the United States. There are others who focus on surveillance and detection of outbreaks. And there are practitioners, administrators, planners, and government officials who are on the front lines of public health preparedness and response. 
On Sept. 7-8, people with interests in surveillance, modeling, and response will gather at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) to share their experiences, learn about one another's areas of expertise, and identify opportunities for collaboration and information sharing. The workshop on Infectious Disease Informatics: Surveillance, Modeling, and Response will provide an opportunity to discuss how to detect and respond to a large-scale infectious disease outbreak or bioterrorism attack. Because animals play a role in the transmission of about three-fourths of emerging infectious diseases and many of the pathogens of greatest concern as bioterrorism agents, the workshop will span both human and veterinary health fields and will be of interest to infectious disease and emergency medicine physicians or residents; public health veterinarians; infection prevention and control practitioners; emergency management personnel and disaster planners; hospital epidemiologists, medical technologists, microbiologists and public health officials. During the workshop, NCSA will launch a discussion of the needs of the infectious disease research and response community, with the ultimate goal of developing a strategy for creating a comprehensive infectious disease cyberenvironment. Workshop attendance is free. Registration and complete details are available online at its Web site.
On Sept. 7-8, people with interests in surveillance, modeling, and response will gather at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) to share their experiences, learn about one another's areas of expertise, and identify opportunities for collaboration and information sharing. The workshop on Infectious Disease Informatics: Surveillance, Modeling, and Response will provide an opportunity to discuss how to detect and respond to a large-scale infectious disease outbreak or bioterrorism attack. Because animals play a role in the transmission of about three-fourths of emerging infectious diseases and many of the pathogens of greatest concern as bioterrorism agents, the workshop will span both human and veterinary health fields and will be of interest to infectious disease and emergency medicine physicians or residents; public health veterinarians; infection prevention and control practitioners; emergency management personnel and disaster planners; hospital epidemiologists, medical technologists, microbiologists and public health officials. During the workshop, NCSA will launch a discussion of the needs of the infectious disease research and response community, with the ultimate goal of developing a strategy for creating a comprehensive infectious disease cyberenvironment. Workshop attendance is free. Registration and complete details are available online at its Web site.