Distant peer-tutoring of clinical skills, using tablets with instructional videos and Skype: A pilot study in the UK and Malaysia

opted out of publication. Abstract #: 02ITIS023 Data sharing for neglected tropical disease drug discovery: Creating a framework for reducing redundancy and improving global collaboration M. Pollastri; Northeastern University, Boston, MA/US Program/Project Purpose: Context. With the ever widening interest in drug discovery for neglected tropical diseases, increasing numbers of academic and industrial research teams are performing medicinal chemistry optimization of potential new drug agents. One risk of this expansion is the duplication of effort caused by compartmentalized prosecution of research projects that are unknowingly focused on pursuing highly similar research directions. The root cause of this issue is the common practice of doing drug discovery research with high levels of confidentiality, a “best practice” that is typical in the for-profit pharmaceutical industry, where developing and protecting intellectual property (IP) is paramount. A new way of thinking about sharing and protecting research data for NTDs is needed. Project Period. January 2014-onward (indefinite). Why the program/project is in place. The development of a secure data sharing portal could strongly enhance and accelerate NTD drug discovery efforts worldwide, both by reducing redundancy and by engaging smaller, resource-constricted organizations who are performing drug discovery research. Aim. To establish, populate, and operate a new data sharing portal that supports drug discovery for neglected tropical diseases. Structure/Method/Design: Desired Outcomes. We intend to develop a self-sustaining, collaborative data sharing portal that captures chemical structure and biological screening data and that enables the collaborative and informed progression of NTD drug discovery projects, while balancing researchers’ desire for information protection (confidentiality). Participants: The recruitment of participants in the program has been primarily by word of mouth, utilizing social media platforms, professional scientific networks, research seminars and posters, and an opinion piece published in PLOSNeglected Tropical Diseases (DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.000286). Sustainability: Viability will be dictated by: (1) Engagement. We plan to have r portal teleconference meetings to discuss recent deposits and ongoing projects. In addition, we aspire to make available unique research resources for participating members in order to incentivize active participation. (2) Funding: we will seek funding from other organizations (NIH, BMGF) in order to further operate the portal. Outcomes & Evaluation: Successes We have secured $25,000 in funding via crowdfunding and established the database. We have also identified large tranches of data for deposit and shared, and have engaged other academic NTD drug discovery groups Monitoring. None conducted. Going Forward: Ongoing challenges? The primary challenge has been to recruit participants who will deposit data into the portal and agree to deposit new data on an ongoing basis. Are there any unmet goals? No How are/may future program activities change as a result? N/A Funding: The pilot phase of this project has been funded by a crowdfunding campaign ($25,000): Abstract #: 02ITIS024 An assessment of data quality in Haiti’s multi-site electronic medical record system N. Puttkammer, J. Baseman, B. Devine, N. Hyppolite, G. France, J. Honore, A. Matheson, S. Zeliadt, K. Yuhas, K. Sherr, J. Cadet, S. Barnhart; University of Washington, Seattle, WA/US, University of Washington, Seattle, WA/US, International Training and Education Center for Health (I-TECH)–Haiti, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Ministry of Health and Population (MSPP), Port-au-Prince, Haiti, National Program for Control of Malaria (PNCM), Port-au-Prince, Haiti Background: The World Health Organization has identified health information systems as a “building block” for health systems