Faculty
Dr. Kai Zheng, FACMI
Professor of Informatics and Emergency Medicine
Chief Research Information Officer, Office of Data and Information Technology
Director of Biomedical Informatics, Institute for Clinical and Translational Science
Director, Public Health Informatics & Technology Workforce Development Program
University of California, Irvine
Kai Zheng, PhD, FACMI, is Professor of Informatics and Emergency Medicine at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). He also serves as Chief Research Information Officer of the Office of Data and Information Technology, Director of Biomedical Informatics of the Institute for Clinical and Translational Science, and Director of the Public Health Informatics & Technology Workforce Development Program. Prior to joining UCI, he was Associate Professor in Health Management and Policy in the School of Public Health and Associate Professor in Information in the School of Information at the University of Michigan. He was Director of University of Michigan's Health Informatics Program preparing students for careers that will harness the power of information to enhance health and transform individual health and healthcare. Zheng's research draws upon techniques from the fields of information systems and human–computer interaction to study the use of information, communication, and decision technologies in patient care delivery and management. His recent work has focused on topics such as interaction design, workflow and sociotechnical integration, diffusion and evaluation of health IT, and use of computational methods to augment the value of unstructured free-text health data. Zheng received his PhD degree in Information Systems from Carnegie Mellon University. He was the recipient of the 2011 American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) New Investigator Award that recognizes early informatics contributions and significant scholarly achievements. He was elected Fellow of the American College of Medical Informatics (FACMI) in 2018. From 2019 to 2021, he served as Chair of AMIA's Clinical Information Systems Working Group.
kai.zheng@uci.edu
(949) 824-6920
6095 Donald Bren Hall, Irvine, CA 92697-3440
homepage
Dr. Yunan Chen, FACMI
Yunan Chen, PhD, FACMI is Professor of Informatics in the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), with an adjunct appointment in the Joe C. Wen School of Population and Public Health, College of Health Sciences. Her area of research lies at the intersection of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), and Health Informatics. In particular, she is interested in studying how health information is generated, managed, shared, and utilized to drive better healthcare in both clinical and patient-oriented settings. She received her PhD degree from the iSchool at Drexel University in 2008 and a Bachelor of Medicine degree from China Medical University in 2003.
Her research aims to provide empirical, conceptual, and theoretical understandings of information practices in healthcare through in situ examination of how healthcare providers and consumers, e.g. patients and caregivers, interact with computerized technologies in their daily lives or work practices. Dr.Chen has done extensive research exploring sociotechnical impacts and design issues of electronic health records systems, and more recently, patient-facing applications, such as personal informatics tools and chronic disease management systems.
Dr. Chen currently serves as the Interim Chair of the Department of Informatics at UCI and as the Consortium Chair for the Human-Computer Interaction Consortium.
yunanc@ics.uci.edu
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Grad Students
Brian Tran
As we begin to interact with computers in more numerous and complex ways, as well as use automation in contexts that we never have before, how can we best manage the strengths of artificial and human intelligence to enhance people? Understanding technology through the lens of design for usability and productivity can help generate best practices for the effective use of automation.
As an MD-PhD student at University of California, Irvine, Brian is interested in studying technology use in the healthcare setting and creating tools that will better enable healthcare providers to focus on the most important part of medicine: caring for the patient.
Interests: Human-Computer interaction, Computer-supported cooperative work, Health Informatics, Clinical Documentation Support
bdtran@uci.edu
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Zhaoyuan “Nick” Su
Zhaoyuan “Nick” Su (he/they) is a 5th year PhD Candidate in the Informatics department at the University of California, Irvine. They conduct research in the fields of Human-Computer Interaction, Computer-supported Cooperative Work, and Health Informatics.
Their research explores the interactions of healthcare participants—including patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers—with health information systems and health data through a socio-technical lens. Their current work includes a) understanding how families with children diagnosed with severe chronic illnesses create safe places and manage stigma, and b) identifying design opportunities to build children’s health capacity through supporting their health data literacy.
Before UC Irvine, they earned a B.S. in Architectural Studies with an Informatics minor at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
nick.su@uci.edu
homepage
Yawen Guo
Yawen Guo is a PhD candidate in the Informatics Department at the University of California, Irvine. Her research primarily revolves around applying data science and machine learning techniques to health-centric subjects. Presently, She's focused on employing natural language processing to analyze health-related text data, sourced from clinical documents or social media platforms. Before joining UC Irvine, Yawen earned a Master's degree in Information Systems Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
yaweng5@uci.edu
homepage
Rachael Zehrung
Rachael is a PhD student in Informatics whose research lies at the intersection of Human-Computer Interaction, Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, and Health Informatics. Her work takes a socio-technical approach to understanding data practices and technology use in family and community health contexts, with a focus on marginalized populations with complex care needs. Prior to UC Irvine, she received a BS and MS in Computer Science from the University of Maryland, College Park.
rzehrung@uci.edu
homepage
Ha Na Cho
Ha Na Cho is currently a doctoral student specializing in Informatics at UC Irvine. Her research pursuits primarily encompass the domains of Human-Computer Interaction, Biomedical Informatics, and Behavioral Informatics. She is committed to the ongoing exploration of advanced methodologies and technologies, particularly in the realm of artificial intelligence, with the overarching goal of enhancing environmental quality and promoting healthier lives for individuals.
Prior to this, she earned a B.S. in Biology from Roosevelt University and a M.S. in Biomedical Informatics from the University of Chicago. Her professional background includes research experience as a researcher at the Seoul National University Hospital, and the University of Chicago, and data scientist at the Asan Medical Center.
chohn1@uci.edu
homepage
Di Hu
Di Hu is a Ph.D. student in Informatics at the University of California, Irvine, under the guidance of Dr. Kai Zheng. Her research focuses on leveraging high-dimensional health data to uncover gaps between healthcare stakeholders' cognitive processes and the design of technologies. She is particularly interested in advancing technological solutions to reduce clinician burnout while improving the quality and efficiency of healthcare delivery.
Prior to joining UCI, Di worked as a Research Informatics Analyst at MedStar Health for two years after completing her Master’s in Information Systems at the University of Maryland, College Park, where she was a student research fellow at the Center for Health Information and Decision Systems (now the CDHAI at JHU).
dih11@uci.edu
homepage
Kyuha Jung
Kyuha Jung is a Ph.D. student in Informatics with research areas in Human-Computer Interaction and Health Informatics. Through human-centered approaches, he is interested in designing technology that supports people with mental health needs. His academic background lies in Information and Interaction Design (BS, Yonsei University) and Communication (MA, Seoul National University).
kyuhaj@uci.edu
homepage
Jamie Lee
As an Informatics Ph.D. student at University of California, Irvine, Jamie is primarily interested in Human-Computer Interaction, consumer health technologies, and behavior change. Her research focuses on analyzing the design, implementation, and effects of guidelines around digital health technologies. She is particularly interested in how it affects children and people with chronic illnesses. Prior to joining the PhD program, she earned a B.S. in Human-Computer Interaction from University of California, San Diego and worked as an user experience designer for several years at healthcare-related companies.
jamiel9@uci.edu
homepage
Seungmin Jeong
Seungmin Jeong (she/her) is a Master’s student and her current research interest is exploring technology for healthcare, especially for in-home caregiving. She is passionate about improving user experience so that they can solve daily problems and enjoy well-being through advanced technology. Before joining UCI, she worked as a product manager and user experience designer who dealt with entertainment apps in Korea. She completed a BA in Information Science & Culture, and a BA in Communication at Seoul National University.
seungmj1@uci.edu
LinkedIn
homepage
Yiliang Zhou
Yiliang Zhou is a Ph.D. student in Informatics at the University of California, Irvine. His research lies at the intersection of public health, biomedical sciences, and informatics. Yiliang's interests focus on Natural Language Processing and the application of Large Language Models in biomedical, particularly in Electronic Health Records. His current work emphasizes promoting equity in healthcare and precise outcome extraction, addressing healthcare disparities, and enhancing decision-making in clinical environments.
Before joining UCI, his academic background lies in Biochemistry (BA, University of Washington) and Health Informatics (MS, Weill Cornell Medicine - Cornell University).
yilianz@uci.edu
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Ziqi Yang
Ziqi Yang is a Ph.D. student in Informatics at the University of California, Irvine. Her research lies at the intersection of human-computer interaction and health informatics, focusing on addressing the needs and challenges in women's health, spanning contexts from personal health tracking to clinical communication. With a background in engineering and design, Ziqi is also interested in leveraging technological advancements such as AI to create systems that empower individuals to better understand and manage women's health conditions.
Prior to joining UCI, she earned a B.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and an M.S. in Information Science from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
ziqiy30@uci.edu
homepage
Staff
Dr. Tianchu Lyu
Tianchu Lyu, MPH, PhD, is a data scientist in Informatics at UC Irvine. His research focuses on advancing and applying biomedical informatics methodologies to enhance research efforts and improve health outcomes, particularly in maternal health. His work spans several areas, including electronic health record (EHR) data mining, phenotyping, ontology development, and machine learning algorithm development. Prior to joining UC Irvine, he earned PhD from University of South Carolina and MPH from Emory University.
tlyu4@uci.edu
Alumni
Dr. Lu He
Dr. Lu He is a tenure-track assistant professor in the Zilber College of Public Health at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Dr. He earned her PhD degree in Informatics from the University of California, Irvine in July 2023 and she is interested in natural language processing and human-computer interaction with a focus on health-related topics.
lhe11@uci.edu
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Dr. Mayara Costa Figueiredo
Dr. Mayara Costa Figueiredo received her PhD in Informatics from the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Irvine, under the supervision of Dr. Yunan Chen and Dr. Kai Zheng in the Health and Informatics lab. Dr. Figueiredo's research interests lie at the intersections of Human Computer Interaction, Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, and Health.
mcostafi@uci.edu
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Dr. Tera Reynolds
Dr. Tera Reynolds is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Information Systems at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Dr. Reynolds earned her PhD degree in Informatics from the University of California, Irvine in 2021. In her research, she take a socio-technical lens to understand how we can improve the design and implementation of technologies that connect, facilitate interaction, and support the independent and collaborative health work of individuals (e.g., patients, general public/citizens) and health professionals (e.g., doctors, public health practitioners).
tlreynol@uci.edu
@TeraReynolds
homepage
Alessandro Ghigi, MS
With years of experience in software analysis, design, and development, Alessandro Ghigi is proficient in a wide array of technologies. His expertise includes back-end languages such as PHP, Python, Java Enterprise, and front-end technologies like HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, and AngularJS. Alessandro has a strong background in database management, having worked with platforms like IBM DB2, Oracle, MySQL, and PostgreSQL. Additionally, he has in-depth knowledge of GIS tools, including the ESRI suite and Google Maps API, and extensive experience in project methodologies, design patterns, and UML.
Throughout Alessandro's career, he has led teams and collaborated closely with clients on diverse projects. He excels in tasks ranging from data cleansing and loading to dashboard creation, showcasing his ability to manage large clinical datasets effectively. His expertise, combined with his analytical and problem-solving skills, allows him to navigate the entire software production lifecycle with ease, from initial design to testing.
aghigi@hs.uci.edu
LinkedIn
Dr. Mustafa Hussain
Dr. Mustafa Hussain is currently an NLM postdoctoral fellow at the OHSU Department of Medical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology (DMICE). Dr. Hussain studies the use of social digital therapeutics to facilitate addiction recovery. He joined OHSU in 2021 after earning a Ph.D. in Informatics at the University of California Irvine, where he studied California’s prescription opioid database through a social and historical lens. His approach involves serving as an interdisciplinary intermediary. He enjoys yoga.
mihussai@uci.edu
homepage
Zhaoxian Hu, MS
Zhaoxian Hu is a results-driven developer and data analyst. He codes using Python, Java, JavaScript (TypeScript), Golang, HTML, CSS, and SQL to address various needs. He is a fan of Vim, Linux, Git, RESTful API, Object-oriented programming, Test-driven development, Cloud computing, and DevOps. At work, he spends time tackling a wide variety of information in the healthcare field, and he really appreciates all the experiences that challenge him to learn new skills and explore different directions.
huzhx@uci.edu
LinkedIn
Dr. Clara Caldeira
Dr. Clara Caldeira is a Accessibility UX Researcher at Google, Brasil. Her research in Human-Computer Interaction involves topics such as aging in place technology, chronic condition management, cultural and psychosocial aspects of users’ experiences, and human-data interaction. Her work has been published in top-tier peer-reviewed conferences and journals. Dr. Caldeira earned her PhD and Master’s Degrees in Informatics from the University of California, Irvine, and her Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science from University of Brasilia, Brazil.
claram@uci.edu
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Dr. Elizabeth Eikey
Dr. Elizabeth Eikey is a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science as well as the Design Lab at UC San Diego. Dr. Eikey received her PhD in Information Sciences and Technology from the Pennsylvania State University and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in Informatics at the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences and the Institute for Clinical & Translational Science at UC Irvine. She is the Assistant Director of the iSchool Inclusion Institute (i3) and the Director of the Mental Health in Design (MiD) Lab. Her research broadly focuses on mental health, technology, and equity.
eeikey@health.ucsd.edu
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Dr. Sun Young Park
Dr. Sun Young Park is currently an associate professor at the University of Michigan in the Stamps School of Art and Design and the School of Information. As a design researcher and interaction designer, Dr. Park is interested in complex systems, services, and environments that shape people’s needs, behaviors, and cultures/practices. Her research interests lie at the intersection of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) and Health Informatics, and she is particularly interested in examining the social, technical, contextual and cultural dimensions of social computing systems.
Prior to her position at the University of Michigan, She completed her PhD in the Department of Informatics at the University of California, Irvine. Her PhD dissertation is titled, "Learning from Users' Adaptation Experience: Outlining the Design Space for Health IT Systems” (advised by Dr. Yunan Chen). She previously earned a Master Degree at Carnegie Mellon University and a Bachelor degree at Ewha Women’s University, Seoul, Korea.
sunypark@umich.edu
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Dr. Xinning Gui
Dr. Xinning Gui is an assistant professor in the College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) at Penn State. In Spring 2019, Dr. Gui received a Ph.D. degree in information and computer sciences under the supervision of Dr. Yunan Chen from the Department of Informatics at the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Gui's research lies at the intersection of Health Informatics, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), and Computer Supported Collaborative Work (CSCW). Her work seeks to understand individual healthcare consumers’ interaction with the healthcare system, and explore design solutions for better healthcare service and patient engagement.
guix@uci.edu
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Dr. Yu Chen
Dr. Yu Chen is an assistant professor at the School of Information Systems and Technology in the Lucas College and Graduate School of Business at San Jose State University (SJSU). Her research interests include emerging technology education, human-computer interaction, computer supported collaborative work, and health informatics. Before joining SJSU, Dr. Chen was a postdoctoral researcher working with Prof. Yunan Chen and Prof. Gloria Mark at Department of Informatics at the University of California, Irvine (UCI).
ychen25@uci.edu
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Other Members
| Name | Role | When |
|---|---|---|
| Kaiyuan Hu | Undergraduate | Winter 2022-Present |
| Navdha Jinda | Research Assistant | Summer 2023-Present |
| Song Seo | Undergraduate | Spring 2023-Present |
| Dr. Xiaoyong Liu | Visited from Guangdong Polytechnic Normal University | Summer 2016-2017 |
| Jiawen Zhang | Undergraduate | Summer 2020 |
| Meghna Kaligotla | Undergraduate | Fall 2020 |
| Lauren Sukumar | Undergraduate | Spring 2017 |
| Fatemeh Mousavi | Research volunteer | Fall 2016 |
| Diane Monchusap | Undergraduate | Spring 2017 |
| Justin Park | Interned as junior undergraduate from Cornell University | Summer 2016 |
| Tiancheng Lin | Junior undergraduate from Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications | Summer 2016 |
| Amid Ayobi, MS | Visited from University College London | Summer 2016 |
