推进非洲卫生领域的人工智能和数据科学：全球卫生优先事项的教育、合作和应用

摘要(中文译文)

非洲面临卫生数据科学家短缺的问题。尽管承担着全球25%的疾病负担，非洲仅拥有全球3%的医疗卫生人力，卫生数据科学专业人才更是匮乏。随着人工智能和数据科学变革全球医疗卫生——从疾病监测到精准医学——这一能力差距对非洲应对自身卫生挑战、利用其不断增长的年轻人口推动卫生创新的能力构成了重大威胁。我们介绍WASHA Takwimu项目，这是一项由美国国立卫生研究院（NIH）非洲数据科学计划（DSI Africa）联盟资助的多机构能力建设倡议。该项目采用中心-辐射模式，以夸祖鲁-纳塔尔大学（UKZN）、哈佛大学陈曾熙公共卫生学院和海德堡全球健康研究所为中心节点，在加纳、尼日利亚、坦桑尼亚和乌干达设有辐射合作伙伴。该项目通过多种方式提供培训：硕士学位、博士后 fellowship、短期课程和专业发展活动。课程将数据科学方法与全球健康优先领域的应用相结合，包括卫生系统强化与食物系统、气候变化和行星健康，采用基于胜任力、以应用为重点和数字化增强的教学方法。2020年至2024年间，WASHA Takwimu（斯瓦希里语意为“点燃数据”）培训了来自五个非洲国家的博士后研究员、博士生及其他早期职业研究人员和从业者。该项目支持了UKZN卫生数据科学硕士项目的开发，并为马凯雷雷大学类似项目的师资能力和课程开发做出了贡献。主要成就包括成功的教师交流替代了昂贵的国际学生派遣、学习交付中技术创新的整合，以及与国家级研究和政策组织的战略合作，将培训与政策相关应用相连接。在基础设施限制、数据治理挑战、参与中的性别不平等以及管理学生期望同时保持严格入学要求的重要性等方面，积累了关键经验教训。WASHA Takwimu表明，结合研究生培训、师资发展和利益相关方参与的网络化方法能够在非洲建立可持续的卫生数据科学能力。该项目的中心-辐射模式提供了一个可复制的框架，平衡了集中协调与分布式实施，而硕士项目则为其他非洲机构建设类似教育项目提供了可适应的模板。然而，巩固现有成就必须先于雄心勃勃的扩展。战略优先事项包括加强与国家研究委员会和卫生部的合作伙伴关系、解决持续存在的性别差距、深化私营部门参与以及逐步发展博士项目。随着非洲人口到2050年接近25亿，对卫生数据科学能力的投资将被证明对于应对非洲大陆卫生优先事项和使非洲机构成为全球领导者至关重要。

Abstract

Africa faces a shortage of health data scientists. Despite bearing 25% of the global disease burden, it has only 3% of the world's healthcare workforce and even less health data science expertise. As artificial intelligence and data science transform global healthcare, from disease surveillance to precision medicine, this capacity gap poses a significant threat to Africa's ability to address its health challenges and harness its growing young population for health innovation. We describe the WASHA Takwimu program, a multi-institutional capacity-building initiative funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Data Science Initiative for Africa (DSI Africa) consortium. Operating through a hub-and-spoke model anchored by the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, and Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, the project has spoke partners in Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda. The program delivers training through multiple modalities: master's degrees, postdoctoral fellowships, short courses, and professional development activities. The curriculum integrates data science methods with applications in global health priority domains, including health systems strengthening and food systems, climate change, and planetary health, using competency-based, application-focused, and digitally enhanced approaches. From 2020 to 2024, WASHA Takwimu (Kiswahili for "Ignite Data") trained postdoctoral fellows, doctoral students, and other early-career researchers and practitioners across five African countries. The program has supported the development of a Master of Health Data Science program at UKZN and contributed to faculty capacity and curriculum development for a similar program at Makerere University. Key achievements include successful faculty exchanges replacing costly international student placements, integration of technological innovations in learning delivery, and strategic partnerships with national research and policy organizations which connect training to policy-relevant applications. Critical lessons have been learned regarding infrastructure constraints, data governance challenges, gender inequality in participation, and the importance of managing student expectations while maintaining rigorous entry requirements. WASHA Takwimu demonstrates that network-based approaches combining graduate training, faculty development, and stakeholder engagement can build sustainable health data science capacity in Africa. The program's hub-and-spoke model offers a replicable framework balancing centralized coordination with distributed implementation, while the Master's programs provide adaptable templates for building similar educational offerings at other African institutions. However, consolidating current achievements must precede ambitious expansion. Strategic priorities include strengthening partnerships with national research councils and Ministries of Health, addressing persistent gender disparities, deepening private sector engagement, and progressively developing PhD programs. As Africa's population approaches 2.5 billion by 2050, investments in health data science capacity will prove essential for addressing continental health priorities and positioning African institutions as global leaders.

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