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Gary Allemann , MD at Master Data Management
with treating a virus like COVID-19 and reducing the likelihood of drug-discovery failure .
It was precisely the work of data scientists like these that gave us functional vaccines and medicines in such a short space of time . The human body is incredibly complex , and only Big Data offers the scope researchers need to analyse and innovate ideal treatments .
Improving outreach on empirical , quantifiable results structured within carefully controlled phases , any Big Data created or applied within these studies has the potential to derive real , repeatable solutions . This is because legitimate data reveals insights into the ways the human body functions and reacts to treatment .
Researchers were quick to utilise Big Data to look for new ways to combat COVID-19 when the virus emerged . In one instance , scientists from Columbia University began a start-up called EVQLV dedicated to the creation of COVID-treatments through computationally generating hundreds of millions of potential antibodies . Such a system is necessary for comparing and testing all the variables associated
Optimising these new treatments isn ’ t the only aspect of epidemiology that Big Data stands to improve . Reaching out to the public with messages about risk factors , vaccine eligibility , and safe practices have all been supported by data-driven practices .
Using data from the North Carolina Health System , researchers identified patients who were already receiving cancer treatment but did not have an active email or patient portal or lived in a country with higher than a 20 % poverty rate . As a result of this identification , vaccine information was sent out to 536 potentially marginalised patients who might otherwise not have known about their resources .
Improving patient outreach is just one of the many ways Big Data has helped medical professionals manage the pandemic . However , just as the Internet can help
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