Digital Data in Health: How Blending Research Styles Promotes Teamwork

In today’s digital era, health research heavily relies on digital data. This shift calls for teamwork across different fields to tackle the tricky methods and hurdles that come with this data. Typically, health research follows a clear, step-by-step path, while data science takes a more flexible, exploration-focused route. Yet, there's a surprising lack of courses and guidance on combining these approaches effectively. Imagine you’re trying to build a puzzle, but each piece comes from a different box. That’s what researchers face when they mix data science and health research. They need to figure out how to make all the pieces fit together. This means breaking down walls between different research styles. More teamwork means better flexibility. Researchers can swap methods and learn from each other. For example, health researchers might adopt data science’s iterative approach, while data scientists could incorporate the rigorous steps of health research. The key is communication and understanding, which fosters a more creative and resilient research community. Still, universities and schools haven’t quite caught up. There’s a real gap in teaching how to blend these disciplines. This is where guidance and structured courses come in. They could help researchers hit the ground running, knowing how to navigate these cross-disciplinary waters.