Dartmouth Events

Erika Moen of The Dartmouth Institute and Feng Fu of the Department of Mathematics will present talks in the DINR seminar series. 

Details of their talks are given below.

Presenter: Erika Moen, Ph.D.

Title: An investigation of variation of evidence-based implantable cardioverter defibrillator treatment in the U.S. from a network science perspective

Abstract: The application of social network methodology to the field of healthcare delivery is relatively novel, yet its pursuit is motivated by recent evidence that professional relationships between physicians influence prescribing behavior, technology diffusion, and quality and cost of care. An example of a prescribing behavior that has significant variation across the country is the use of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) in patients with cardiovascular disease at risk of heart failure. This variation exists despite established guidelines for ICD use from the American College of Cardiology Foundation. In this work, we used information from the National Cardiovascular Data Registry to determine the number and rate of evidence-based ICD surgeries that occurred within hospital referral regions in the United States. A bipartite network of physicians and patients, constructed using Medicare Part B claims, was projected to form a unipartite network among physicians. Our first research question investigates the relationship between utilization of ICDs and patient-sharing networks of physicians. Our second research question examines the associations between adherence to ICD guidelines, the centrality of ICD providers, and the physician network structure within HRRs. This approach may suggest novel and more effective methods for improving evidence-based care through intervening on a professional physician network.

Presenter: Feng Fu, Ph.D.

Title: Coevolution of Homophily and Cooperation in Social Networks

Abstract: Social interaction networks exist at many scales of biological organization, from the level of multicellular aggregates to human societies. These networks often have an exquisite structure that promotes cooperation. The formation of social ties and cooperative interactions is endogenously driven by homophily, i.e., the phenomenon that "birds of a feather flock together." Individuals tend to bond with and cooperate with someone else who resembles themselves. In this talk, I will present my recent work on studying coevolutionary dynamics of homophily and cooperation in social networks. These results may help us understand how phenotypic similarity leads to social ties ("structure") and cooperation (adaptive "function") of social networks.

Funding for DINR's speaker series for the current academic year has been made possible by a grant from Dartmouth's Neukom Institute and by a generous gift in support of the Quantitative Social Sciences at Dartmouth.

http://www.dartmouth.edu/~dinr/