THE UNIVERSITY of the Philippines Mindanao will establish a science center that will assist in analyzing crucial data on infectious diseases to better understand public health risks.

“The focus will be on more accurate disease prediction, improve the recovery prospects of infected individuals, and evaluate risk in communities through animal and water studies. Local practices and attitudes will also be given equal consideration in making recommendations,” the university said.

The center will adopt the “OneHealth model” that encourages multiple disciplines that work locally, nationally, and globally to attain optimal health for people, animals, and the environment.

“The maps and data products will be made available to the public and other sectors to help create policies and decisions related to disease prevention and public health. The center’s activities will be undertaken in partnership with the public sector and civil society organizations,” UPM said.

Program leader Dr. May Anne Mata of UP Mindanao said that the Department of Science and Technology helped in the sourcing of funds for the establishment of the center.

“UP Mindanao’s proposal is being considered for funding under the DOST’s Niche Centers in the Regions (NICER) program. We have renamed our NICER program as ‘Center for Applied Modeling, Data Analytics, and Bioinformatics for Decision-Support Systems in Health,’ or AMDABiDSS-Health,” Mata said.

The NICER center is part of the Mindanao Health Initiatives of UP Mindanao, which includes a proposed College of Medicine and a city hospital to be built in partnership with the Davao City government.