Fostering Collaboration and Connection: Highlights from the DBMI Retreat

During the Department of Biomedical Informatics (DBMI) third annual retreat, Casey Greene, PhD, professor and founding chair of DBMI at the University of Colorado School of Medicine on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, highlighted the significant progress achieved over the past two years. He noted the department's evolution from a collection of workplace proximity associates into an inclusive community of friends and colleagues.  

“I firmly believe that the positive impact that we make in the world is going to be recognized and supported regardless of how it’s funded and regardless of how it's disseminated. I want to say it is an honor and privilege to be part of a community like this that is driven to make the world better tomorrow than it is today. I think we should always keep that as our guiding light.” Casey Greene, PhD. 

The event was held at the Denver Botanic Gardens on Tuesday, Aug. 27. It brought together faculty, staff, and trainees, providing an opportunity for participants to connect with new colleagues, explore potential collaborations, and discuss how each member contributes to advancing research, innovation, and patient care at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus. 

We were thrilled to welcome Kristi Holmes, PhD, director of Galter Health Sciences Library, associate dean for knowledge management and strategy, and professor of preventative medicine (biostatistics and informatics) in the division of Health and Biomedical Informatics at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. Holmes delivered a keynote presentation on Health AI, covering current and future projects and how they shape the strategic direction of the field.

Research at Lightning Speed 

The event included 22 faculty and trainee lightning talks covering clinical informatics, omics and disease, and genetics and genomes. To add a fun element, the trainees introduced the use of Nerf guns for those who exceeded their allotted time. There was a visible wave of excitement and apprehension as speakers approached their time limit. 

This year's lightning talks featured the newest faculty members of DBMI: Harriet Dashnow, PhD, Yanjun Gao, PhD, Andrea Sikora, PharmD, and Barbara Stranger, PhD. It was an opportunity to welcome them to the department and explore their upcoming projects. 

Here is a complete list of presenters. 

In addition to the lightning talks, the event included a reception and poster session showcasing the work of 14 DBMI members. 

Raymond Lesiyon, MS (left) and Kirk Hohsfield (right) were present during the evening poster session.

Collaboration, Mentorship, and Kudos 

After lunch, the group gathered for a department photo followed by breakout sessions that explored two topics: the mentor-mentee relationship and collaboration in action. The groups discussed positive and negative mentoring styles, types of training will be helpful for a mentor or mentee, lessons they have learned from their collaborations, and the types of expertise represented in their collaborative projects.  

Members from DBMI participated in breakout sessions during the annual retreat at the Denver Botanic Gardens.

The department took the opportunity to share kudos, offer advice for writing successful grants, and discuss what they like most about DBMI. Key points included recognizing the seminar committee's efforts, advising trainees to start their projects much earlier than they might expect, and emphasizing the strong community within the department. The coffee machine in the breakroom was also featured! 

Post-it note (left) sharing advice for writing grants, "Start it so much earlier than you think." Post-it notes (right) sharing kudos for the seminar committee, Carissa Sherman, Carlos Rodriguez, and others.

The seminar committee organized this year's event with Janani Ravi, PhD, and Katrina Claw, PhD serving as co-chairs. Additional committee members included Carlos Rodriquez, Stacey Collister, Etienne Danis, PhD, and Jennifer Briggs. For more information about the committee or to get involved, email Carlos Rodriguez at carlos.rodriguez@cuanschutz.edu. 

We greatly appreciated the opportunity to connect with everyone at the annual retreat and gain insights into the outstanding work conducted by DBMI members across campus. We look forward to another exciting retreat in 2025.