postdoc position - University of Utah bioinformatics

Job Summary:

The University of Utah Department of Biomedical Informatics has a Postdoctoral Research Fellow available in population and behavioral health informatics. The position is part of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) training grant and is open to trainees with a doctorate in a psychology-related field. Trainees in this category are eligible for funding 1-3 years for advanced informatics training, and requires the completion of an MS degree in informatics unless the candidate already holds a graduate degree in informatics, information science, computer science, or a closely related field. These positions are funded at the NLM stipend support rates (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/ep/trainingdirectors.html#stipends). The successful candidate will work in a stimulating and dynamic environment with a large group of graduate students and faculty in the first and largest Biomedical Informatics department in the U.S. (http://medicine.utah.edu/bmi/). Our Department is one of the University-based Biomedical Informatics Research Training Programs funded by the NLM.  Particular areas of interest are depression, suicide, PTSD, anxiety, addiction (particularly tobacco & opioid abuse), and eating disorders.  

 

Example projects could include:

(1)   Qualitatively analyzing Reddit opioid abuse posts for determinants of transition from prescription pain medication use to illegal drug use

(2)   Providing psychology expertise on a project designed to automatically identify tobacco use trajectories from VA Electronic Health Records

(3)   Providing psychological expertise on an NIH funded project to automatically identify depression symptoms from Twitter data

Specific Responsibilities:

•   To conduct population & behavioral health informatics research

•   Consultation with faculty on appropriate design and development.

•   Work toward independent academic research.

•   Supervise graduate students and other staff working in the lab.

•   Prepare written reports and publications as primary author and present research findings at regional and national meetings.

Minimum Qualifications:

•   PhD/Doctoral degree in psychology/counseling psychology/clinical psychology

•   Publication record appropriate for career stage

•   Willingness to coordinate and supervise part of the research work.

•   Ability to work in a collaborative environment, with a strong commitment to achieving research goals.

•   Willingness to learn informatics skills (e.g. qualitative research, some programming)

•    Interest in public mental health and/or the use of technology to improve patient care

Application requirements:

Email the following documents to john.hurdle@utah.edu and mike.conway@utah.edu

•  Statement of Research Interests [This can be a brief email consisting of 1 or 2 paragraphs]

•  CV

•  Indicate interest in working with Mike Conway

•  Department Supplementary Application Form (available at http://medicine.utah.edu/bmi/documents/supplementary-form2014.pdf)

As per NLM policy, this position is open to US Citizens or Permanent residents only. The University of Utah is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer.