Dear colleagues,
The ISCB Education Subcommittee is pleased to announce a free to attend webinar on “Best practices in statistical computing”.
Speaker: Mr. Ricky Sanchez (Principal Data Scientist at Optum, USA)
Date and Time: 9 February 2023 at 15:00 UK time
Pre-registration is required for attendance. Please visit this link to register to the webinar. Kindly note that there is no attendance fee. This webinar is open to all interested, regardless of membership to the Society.
Registered delegates will receive the Zoom link to attend 48 hours ahead of the webinar.
The webinar will be recorded and remain available to ISCB members for viewing through the Members’ Area.
ABSTRACT:
The world is becoming increasingly complex, both in terms of the rich sources of data we have access to and the statistical and computational methods we can use on data. These factors create an ever-increasing risk for errors in code and the sensitivity of findings to data preparation and the execution of complex statistical and computing methods. The consequences of coding and data mistakes can be substantial. In this paper, we describe the key steps for implementing a code quality assurance (QA) process that researchers can follow to improve their coding practices throughout a project to assure the quality of the final data, code, analyses, and results. These steps include: (i) adherence to principles for code writing and style that follow best practices; (ii) clear written documentation that describes code, workflow, and key analytic decisions; (iii) careful version control; (iv) good data management; and (v) regular testing and review. Following these steps will greatly improve the ability of a study to assure results are accurate and reproducible. The responsibility for code QA falls not only on individual researchers but institutions, journals, and funding agencies as well.
SPEAKER INFORMATION:
Ricky Sanchez is a Principal Data Scientist at Optum, a US-based health services company. His work involves providing decision and analytic support to executive leadership in the area of clinical decision making (e.g., prior authorizations or appeals and grievances). Prior to working at Optum, Ricky spent 14 years with the RAND Corporation, a non-profit, public policy think tank, where he developed models and simulations in support of policy research. He also served as Co-Director for the Center for Scalable Computing and Analysis and was a Professor of Policy Analysis at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. Ricky has Master’s degrees in Electrical & Computer Engineering and Industrial Engineering.
We look forward to your participation.
With kind regards,
Dawn Teare
ISCB Educational Subcommittee Chair
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For organizational queries, please contact the ISCB Office at secretariat@iscb.international
