Robert Wellman, MS
“Being part of Kaiser Permanente research teams gives me a chance to develop cutting-edge biostatistical methods while contributing to health care research with a national impact.”
Robert Wellman, MS
Principal Collaborative Biostatistician, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Robert.D.Wellman@kp.org
206-287-2557
Biography
A graduate of the University of Washington (UW) biostatistics program, Robert Wellman, MS, joined the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) Biostatistics Unit in 2009. His work spans a diverse collection of topics including mental health, pharmacoepidemiology, postmarketing drug safety surveillance, obesity, diagnostic test accuracy, back pain, and breast cancer. Prior to this, he spent 5 years in the Biostatistics Core at the UW Center for AIDS Research.
Research interests and experience
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Biostatistics
Causal inference; longitudinal data; diagnostic and screening test accuracy; clinical trials; survival analysis: rare disease outcomes; nonparametrics; missing data; electronic data; distributed data; statistical computing
Vaccines & Infectious Diseases
Biostatistics; HIV/AIDS; vaccine safety
Complementary & Integrative Health
Biostatistics; clinical trials; back pain
Obesity
Biostatistics; bariatric surgery
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Cancer
Biostatistics; breast cancer; effects of chemotherapy; accuracy of automated data; screening test accuracy; advanced imaging
Medication Use & Patient Safety
Biostatistics; pharmacoepidemiology; postmarketing drug safety surveillance; big data; electronic health record and claims data
Mental Health
Biostatistics; suicide risk prediction, machine learning
Recent publications
Cook AJ, Wellman RD, Nelson JC, Jackson LA, Tiwari RC. Group sequential method for observational data by using generalized estimating equations: application to Vaccine Safety Datalink. J R Stat Soc Ser C Appl Stat. 2015;64(2):319-38. doi: 10.1111/rssc.12075. Epub 2014 Sep 23. PubMed
Sprague BL, Gangnon RE, Burt V, Trentham-Dietz A, Hampton JM, Wellman RD, Kerlikowske K, Miglioretti DL. Prevalence of mammographically dense breasts in the United States. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2014 Sep 12;106(10). pii: dju255. doi: 10.1093/jnci/dju255. Print 2014. PubMed
Sherman KJ, Cook A, Wellman R, Kahn J, Cherkin D. Influence of the amount and duration of therapeutic massage for chronic neck pain on 12 and 26 week outcomes of pain and function. J Altern Complement Med. 2014;20(5):A49-50. doi: 10.1089/acm.2014.5129.abstract. PubMed
Sherman KJ, Cook AJ, Wellman RD, Hawkes RJ, Kahn JR, Deyo RA, Cherkin DC. Five-week outcomes from a dosing trial of therapeutic massage for chronic neck pain. Ann Fam Med. 2014 Mar-Apr;12(2):112-20. doi: 10.1370/afm.1602. PubMed
Houssami N, Abraham LA, Kerlikowske K, Buist DS, Irwig L, Lee J, Miglioretti DL. Risk factors for second screen-detected or interval breast cancers in women with a personal history of breast cancer participating in mammography screening. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2013 May;22(5):946-61. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-12-1208-T. Epub 2013 Mar 19. PubMed
New findings
Simpler models to identify suicide risk perform similarly to more complex ones
Models that are easier to explain, use could have better uptake in health care settings.
Research
Phone therapy for insomnia shown to improve sleep
A study among KP members with sleep problems and osteoarthritis shows promise for overcoming obstacles to treatment.
healthy findings blog
Best weight-loss surgery for diabetes and severe obesity?
Watch video on latest results from PCORnet Bariatric Study. (Spoiler alert: Bypass, not sleeve.)
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