Informatics for Multidisciplinary Advancement, Guidance, and Innovation in Neuroscience

IMAGINe

Research Focus

IMAGINe stands for Informatics for Multidisciplinary Advancement, Guidance, and Innovation in Neuroscience. We align our mission with the UTSW O'Donnell Brain Institute to enhance understanding of the brain and transform the diagnosis and treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders.

Our lab specializes in clinical and research informatics, with a diverse portfolio of projects that leverage electronic health record (EHR) data and multimodal research data to enhance clinical care and advance research in the neurosciences. We focus on studying, designing, and implementing cutting-edge informatics solutions, including neural networks, machine learning, natural language processing (NLP), and other advanced data analytics techniques to drive innovation and improve patient outcomes in neurological care.

Meet the Team

Portrait of Dr. Rousseau

Justin F. Rousseau M.D., M.MSc.

Principal Investigator | Deputy Chief Medical Informatics Officer for Neurosciences
Dr. Rousseau leverages his expertise in neurology and biomedical informatics to support the many ways data can transform health. His research focuses on health information technology and electronic health record data to improve clinical decision-making, enhance patient care, power clinical neuroscience research, and contribute to the broader field of biomedical informatics. Dr. Rousseau seeks to advance neurological health research and care through the secondary use of electronic health record data along with patient-generated data by developing and applying biomedical informatics methods in natural language processing, standard ontologies and terminologies, computable phenotyping, and data warehousing.

Portrait of Estefanie

Estefanie Garduno Rapp, M.D., M.S.H.I.

Informatics Program Manager | Clinical Informatics Researcher
Dr. Estefanie Garduno Rapp is a physician informaticist dedicated to advancing clinical care and research through data-driven solutions. She holds a medical degree from Westhill University and a Master’s in Health Informatics with a focus on Artificial Intelligence from UT Southwestern’s School of Health Professions. Dr. Garduno Rapp manages a range of projects that leverage EHR and multimodal research data to drive innovation in neurosciences. Her work includes developing AI models for early diagnosis, analyzing EHR data to answer clinical questions, and implementing algorithms in multisite research studies for accurate classification of cases and controls.

The logo illustrates a neural network with three distinct layers: an input layer that captures data, an intricate hidden layer where complex processing occurs, and an output layer that reveals the final insights. A coronal brain slice at the end symbolizes the synthesis of data into knowledge, highlighting the role of informatics in advancing neuroscience and clinical innovation.

About Our Logo

We are excited to share the story behind our laboratory logo. It represents a neural network with three distinct layers: an input layer that gathers data, a complex hidden layer where sophisticated processing takes place, and an output layer that delivers final insights. The logo is crowned by a coronal cut of the brain, symbolizing the transformation of raw data into meaningful knowledge. This design emphasizes the critical role of informatics in driving advances in neuroscience and fostering clinical innovation.

Drs. Rousseau and Garduno Rapp