Keynotes - Wendy Nilsen, National Science Foundation
Title: Digital Health and Beyond: What computing can do to transform health
Wendy Nilsen, Program Director, Smart & Connected Health
Information & Intellgient Systems, Computer & Information Science & Engineering Directorate
National Science Foundation
Date/Time: Wednesday October 21, 19:00 - 20:00 UTC
Abstract: Medicine and public health have, without consciously acknowledging it, have become a digital industry. Data from patient records, lab tests, images, mobile apps and the Internet of Things (IoT), have changed the information and interface for health. The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has escalated a shift in care from providers to patients and from clinics to the home. With the proper safeguards, mobile technologies can now safely move diagnosis, treatment of chronic diseases, prevention efforts, and surveillance of infectious disease into the home and community. These changes provide many opportunities for computing and engineering to transform health. To make this happen, the technological and biomedical communities will need to partner in new ways in which safe and trustworthy technology can become a pillar of the healthcare team.
Brief Biography
Wendy Nilsen, Ph.D. is in the Program Director in the Computer and Information Science and Engineering Directorate at NSF. She is also the lead Program Director in the Smart and Connected Health program. Her work focuses on the intersection of computing and human functioning. Her interests span the areas of sensing, analytics, cyber-physical systems, information systems, machine learning, artificial intelligence and robotics. More specifically, her efforts include: serving as cochair of the Health Information Technology Research and Development working group of the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program; the lead for the NSF/NIH Smart and Connected Health announcement; convening workshops to address methodology in technology in health research; and, serving on numerous federal technology initiatives. Prior to joining NSF, Wendy was at the National Institutes of Health.