The Department of Science and Technology (DOST)- PCHRD-NICER launched its “AMDABiDSS-Health” (Center for Applied Modeling, Data Analytics and Bioinformatics for Decision Support Systems in Health), a research center which aims to develop support system to Local Government Units and other agencies in preventing the spread of infectious diseases such as COVID-19 through reliable data management, research outputs, and technical reports.
AMDABiDSS-Health is composed of group of researchers that create tools for disease data analytics, provide technical assistance to health agencies and local government units, and develop enhanced surveillance system for COVID-19 response. The group also act as a hub of technological innovation in the form of an integrated decision support system for the stakeholders to utilize.
“The sharing of resources in terms of data and technical expertise have fruitfully bear numerous research outputs and technical reports that helps to reduce the COVID-19 transmission.” said Dr. Annabelle P. Yumang, Regional Director, DOH-Davao Center for Health Development.
Further, the research center features four projects including Project 1: PPASTOL (Predictive modeling and viral Phylodynamic Analysis on the Spatial and Temporal patterns of disease Outbreaks with the considerations for control and Logistics applied in Mindanao Region), Project 2: RESILIEMC (Risk Management and Enhanced Survivability Analysis Integrated through analysis of Longitudinal Infectious Disease Data and Statistical Epidemiological Model using Clinical Risk Factors), Project 3: VATAS (Vulnerability Assessment Tool: a decision support system for pre-emptive preparedness on emerging infectious diseases among animal reservoir in urban green spaces), and Project 4: IWAS (Integrated Wastewater-Based Epidemiology and Data Analytics for Community-Level Pathogen Surveillance and Genetic Tracking).
Dr. Mary Anne Mata, Program Leader and Chairperson of Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science in UP Mindanao, explained that research plays a vital role in creating public policy amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The impact of your research won’t really be felt always in your writings, but the intensity will be felt once it’s been applied not just by researchers but also those government offices and NGOs directly connected to the public,” she explained.
The AMDABiDSS-Health’s Media Launch held today, March 29 via zoom, with its theme, “Research to Impacts: Bridging gaps between science and public policy amidst COVID-19 pandemic” via Zoom and attended by government agencies, NGOs, representatives from Academe, and several media organizations in the country.