Bio: Eli Spencer, MD, PhD, coordinates the informatics component of the UCSD/UEM Medical Education Partnership Initiative (MEPI); a collaborative effort between the divisions of Infectious Diseases and Bioinformatics at UCSD and the University Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique, to improve medical education and laboratory capacity in Mozambique. Research in his own lab includes yeast based diagnostics, MEMS and portable “lab-in-a-box” technologies integrated via mobile devices.

Research: Dr. Spencer develops informatics and diagnostic solutions to support medical care in resource-limited settings. His background in infectious diseases and physical and computational science informs my perspective and provides me with a unique skill set for tackling global health issues. His clinical experience working in both South America and Southern Africa has driven his research toward need-based solutions with concrete goals for facilitating healthcare. Dr. Spencer works within a collaborative effort between the school's bioinformatics and infectious disease divisions to implement electronic health records, medical content and decision support systems in the developing world. He is also part of a collaboration between the UCSD Center for AIDS Research and Calit2's Qualcomm Institute to produce cell-based biosensors which may provide cost-effective and renewable diagnostic modalities for use at the point of care.