Nawar M. Shara, PhD, is the director of the Center of Biostatistics, Informatics and Data Science (CBIDS) at the MedStar Health Research Institute. Dr. Shara is an associate professor of medicine at Georgetown University School of medicine and director of the Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Research Design (BERD) Core and co-director of the Biomedical Informatics core at the Georgetown-Howard Universities Center for Clinical and Translational Science (GHUCCTS). Dr. Shara is a seasoned biostatistician and have serves as principal investigator with more than 18 years’ experience in leading federal and industry funded projects.
As director of the CBIDS, she leads a multi-disciplinary team whose mission is to engage and support research by providing infrastructure services such as study design, statistical consulting, data management, cohort discovery and innovative data solutions. As director of BERD and co-director of Biomedical Informatics for GHUCCTS, she oversees a wide range of projects stemming from multi-disciplinary collaborations spanning several institutions across the CTSA consortium, she develops courses and workshops, and mentors junior faculty and research scholars.
Dr. Shara’s research interests focus on collaborative and team approaches for big data solutions, predictive analytics, data mining, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML data solutions such as voice assisted devices to improve patient outcomes, patient-provider communication and reduce healthcare utilization.
Dr. Shara is experienced in the design and development of biostatistical curriculum, modular courses and workshops with a focus on applications of AI/ML in health sciences. She has decades of serving as scientific reviewer on study sections for the Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and National Institutes of Health (NIH), and have published over 100 peer reviewed papers. Dr. Shara is site lead for the AIM-AHEAD NIH funded consortium for the Training Core.
Dr. Shara received her undergraduate degree in Economics from Damascus University, and received her master’s degree and PhD in applied statistics from American University in Washington DC.