Markatou named IMS fellow

Marianthi Markatou, professor in the Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health and Health Professions, has been named a fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics (IMS).

Markatou was recognized for “outstanding accomplishments on fundamental research in robust statistics and for a strong commitment to the advancement of statistical science through interdisciplinary research and professional service.”

The IMS is an international scholarly and professional society that fosters the development and dissemination of the theory and applications of statistics and probability. The designation of IMS fellow has been a significant honor for over 85 years, with each fellow demonstrating distinction in research in statistics or probability, or leadership that has profoundly influenced the field.

Markatou, who also holds an appointment in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences as assistant director of the Institute for Healthcare Informatics and as an adjunct professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, is one of 41 IMS fellows selected for 2021.

“This honor recognizes, among other accomplishments, Dr. Markatou’s contributions in the area of data science,” says Gregory Wilding, chair of the Department of Biostatistics. “She is an acknowledged expert with a distinguished body of work that has advanced the field.”

Data science combines multiple fields, including statistics, scientific methods and data analysis, to extract usable, tangible value from data.

In considering new fellows, the IMS looks closely at candidates’ entire research portfolio, which in Markatou’s case emphasizes statistical and interdisciplinary research. Markatou says her interdisciplinary interests “connect the areas of biomedical informatics (clinical, public health and translational) and computer science (machine learning, artificial intelligence) with fundamental statistical concepts and develop tools that enable discovery in both statistical sciences and the subject-matter areas that use them.”

During her career, she has intentionally focused her work on interdisciplinary collaboration, with her significant results and impact validated by associated awards, accumulated knowledge and ongoing work in academia, government and industry. Markatou’s efforts in biomedical informatics — helping to establish statistical science as a fundamental discipline that guarantees quality and reproducibility of results — are evident in publications such as “A framework for patient-centered telemedicine: Application and lessons learned from vulnerable populations,” which appeared in the Journal of Biomedical Informatics in 2020.

Markatou’s longtime work with the Food and Drug Administration also has emphasized interdisciplinary collaboration. For example, her current FDA grant, which is based on published work with former UB graduate biostatistics student Yuxin Ding, focuses on developing valid statistical approaches to monitoring medical products once they reach the market.

Markatou’s disciplinary research endeavors have led to fundamental contributions to statistical science (statistics and biostatistics) and applicable research into problems in the field.