The multidisciplinary workshop was a key step in introducing clinicians to bioinformatics and addressing the question of how best to train them in the tools that are available within this field. It is essential to develop this training as, if clinicians understand bioinformatics; a plethora of genetic data becomes available to them. Not only will clinicians be able to assess and make use of genetic data that influences our lives and health, through an enhanced awareness of the processes involved, greater collaboration between clinicians and bioinformaticians can be achieved.
By bringing together experts in bioinformatics training and those with a clinical background, this workshop developed a roadmap to create and implement training. One outcome of the workshop was: it was agreed that training should be tailored to clinicians working in specific sectors due to limitations in time allocated to clinicians for training in new technologies. As well as a requirement for clinicians to understand the tools and semantics of bioinformatics, the group placed emphasis on the need to inform clinicians about the limitations of the data involved.
The workshop resulted in concrete, deliverable actions that set out the next steps for developing the training. These focused on gathering more information about the training needs of clinicians, the most valuable bioinformatics tools to achieve these needs and the most effective form for such training.
Vicky Schneider, Head of 361° Division (Scientific Training, Education & Learning) at TGAC, said: “What bioinformatics gives you is a lot of resources, databases, and tools to actually explore information related to clinical research which is openly available. For instance, someone working on the human genome may put their data in one repository but further information about parts of this genome may be deposited somewhere else. What you want is to be aware of where the all of the information is stored and the quality of this information. The initial findings arising from this workshop will be actioned at a follow-up workshop in Australia just weeks after this initial meeting. There isn’t one overall solution, but we do have a framework to think about the training and the training needs. It is exciting to start thinking about how we can do this training in UK and in Australia, and how we can benefit from sharing our experiences on what is working and what is not.”
Catherine Shang, Project Manager at Bioplatforms Australia, said: “The bottleneck to personalised medicine is no longer the sequencing technology; the limit now is a lack of expertise to analyse and interpret the large amounts of genomic data and to understand the clinical implications. This workshop is the first step toward developing a bioinformatics training program designed for the needs of the health and medical researchers. We aim to enhance research outcomes through improved bioinformatics skills, understanding of the public resources, databases available and data analysis tools to enable innovation in the ‘genomics age’.“
Ruth Lovering, Principal Research Associate at University College London (UCL), said: “From the discussions I have had with clinicians and research scientists at UCL, and at conferences, it is very apparent that there is a need to provide these experts with information not only about which databases are the most appropriate resources to use, but also how to use them and the limitations of the available datasets.”
The workshop is a collaboration between representatives from Anglia Ruskin University, Bioplatforms Australia, University College London, University of Cambridge and TGAC.
Image: Bioinformatics for Clinicians workshop attendees from Bioplatforms Australia, University of Cambridge, UCL and Anglia Ruskin University, outside TGAC’s new training suite.
About TGAC
The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC) is a world-class research institute focusing on the development of genomics and computational biology. TGAC is based within the Norwich Research Park and receives strategic funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council (BBSRC) - £7.4M in 2013/14 - as well as support from other research funders. TGAC is one of eight institutes that receive strategic funding from BBSRC. TGAC operates a National Capability to promote the application of genomics and bioinformatics to advance bioscience research and innovation.
TGAC offers state of the art DNA sequencing facility, unique by its operation of multiple complementary technologies for data generation. The Institute is a UK hub for innovative Bioinformatics through research, analysis and interpretation of multiple, complex data sets. It hosts one of the largest computing hardware facilities dedicated to life science research in Europe. It is also actively involved in developing novel platforms to provide access to computational tools and processing capacity for multiple academic and industrial users and promoting applications of computational Bioscience. Additionally, the Institute offers a Training programme through courses and workshops, and an Outreach programme targeting schools, teachers and the general public through dialogue and science communication activities. www.tgac.ac.uk
About Bioplatforms Australia
Bioplatforms Australia (BPA) manages a national network of scientific infrastructure and expertise in life sciences including the fields of genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics.
In addition to investments in research infrastructure, BPA promotes increased access to bioscience capabilities, collaboration between scientists and facilitates multi-discipline integration. This non-profit organisation also harnesses the skills and capabilities of its national network to support major research challenges across the agriculture, environment and biomedical sectors.
About BBSRC
BBSRC invests in world-class bioscience research and training on behalf of the UK public. Our aim is to further scientific knowledge, to promote economic growth, wealth and job creation and to improve quality of life in the UK and beyond.
Funded by Government, and with an annual budget of around £467M (2012-2013), we support research and training in universities and strategically funded institutes. BBSRC research and the people we fund are helping society to meet major challenges, including food security, green energy and healthier, longer lives. Our investments underpin important UK economic sectors, such as farming, food, industrial biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.
For more information about BBSRC, our science and our impact see: www.bbsrc.ac.uk
For more information about BBSRC strategically funded institutes see: www.bbsrc.ac.uk/institutes
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For more information, please contact:
Hayley London
Marketing & Communications Officer, The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC).
T: +44 (0) 1603 450107,
E: [email protected]
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