HSDM Research Data Repository

Project Description

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is rapidly revolutionizing many aspects of life. In medicine, AI models caused a paradigm shift driven by an increasing availability of data and data analysis techniques. The technology has great potential to improve patient outcomes, to increase the efficiency of clinical processes, and to reduce healthcare costs.

One of the main reasons why dental medicine has not yet fully adopted AI technologies is that the large data sets that are required to train cutting-edge algorithms are not yet as available and accessible as data from other areas due to privacy concerns and organizational hurdles. Data generated in clinical environments are often locked within segregated, individualized, and limitedly interoperable systems.

CCB is collaborating with the Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM) to improve access to clinical data and IT infrastructure for cutting-edge AI research in oral health and medicine. The Data & Analytics Platforms team at CCB will (1) create a data warehouse of electronic health records, (2) establish an AI research environment with access to data from multiple clinical activities, such as screening, diagnosis, and treatment while protecting patient privacy, and (3) support data analysis and algorithm development.

We are creating an AI research environment powered by the High Performance Computing Platform O2 at Harvard Medical School with access to clinical data for AI-related research. In the future, researchers at HSDM will be able to apply for access after appropriate training and approval of a project by the Institutional Review Board (IRB).

Regular project updates will be posted on this page.