Data Science @ BHA


Hello!

My name is Jordan, I use she/they pronouns, and I want to be BHA's first Director of Data Science. (Resume / Cover Letter)

In 2023, three in ten adults in Colorado reported symptoms of anxiety and/or depressive disorder. Of those three adults with reported symptoms, 1 adult had an unmet need for services.


I have a vision for data science at BHA to create data infrastructure, spark curiosity, and unlock insights to ensure that all people in Colorado have access to accessible, meaningful, and trusted behavioral health services when they need it.

I currently serve as a data lead and lead data engineer within the Health IT division at BHA where I am overseeing the development of a centralized cloud-based data repository.

This body of work involves the integration and ingestion of 40+ data sources from disparate systems into a common data model and forms the foundation of how BHA will facilitate care coordination in a future state.

My efforts to date have led to increases the quality and secure availability of BHA data which has yielded a reduction in time spent on data collection, cleaning, and analysis.



Making an Impact

My impact to BHA cannot be understated as it ties in directly to BHA's 2023-25 Strategic Plan.
  • I am contributing to the expansion and support of a BH workforce through overseeing integration and ingestion of disparate 40+ data sources to reduce administrative burden for providers while improving data quality.

  • I am improving access to BH care through managing data integration between Colorado LADDERS system and OwnPath.co to facilitate accurate and timely public information about 700+ behavioral health facilities

  • I am ensuring there is "no wrong door" to BH care through developing a data analytics strategy for the State of Colorado's modernized Central Registry with 3+ semi-real time cloud dashboards to better understand experiences of the opioid-use disorder population

  • I am improving BHA's accountability to population-specific standards of care through spearheading modernizing youth mental health data collection and interoperability, including the ingestion of 1000+ legacy data files for youth served in Colorado

  • I am developing BHA's workforce by providing mentorship, coaching, and training to 7+ early career professionals in topics such as public health data analysis and data engineering

  • I am championing BHA's values through speaking engagements such as at Grace Hopper Celebration to 400+ attendees to highlight the technological achievements in BHA warehousing

    • If I have achieved all of this as an individual contributor, imagine what I will do as BHA's Director of Data Science.

    Better Together: Our Future of BHA Data

    What is exciting to me about the current state of BHA data is how much opportunity is within reach. We have brilliant, mission-driven team members and resourcing available to build the tools and analytics in service of BHA priorities. All we need now is a leader to engage in and oversee this work, and I believe that person is me.

    I have had the pleasure of working on both the analytics (BHAEE) and IT (HIT) teams at BHA. This has offered me unique insight into the state of data at BHA. With this expertise, I envision initial growth in the following areas of BHA data science:

    To build a data science practice, it all starts with a strong foundation - data infrastructure and system interoperability. These two topics go hand-in-hand to revolutionize the ways in which we currently collect, store, and transmit data.

    Both governance and equity are terms that are widely thrown around, but the definitions of both terms are not always agreed upon. Through having an established data science practice, there is an opportunity to co-create definitions for what data governance and equity mean to BHA.


    Notably, I see opportunity for data equity from a data collection and a data utilization perspective. While there is a focus on ensuring the ways we collect data are equitable as well as clinically and culturally-appropriate, the BHA has an opportunity to recognize that there is privilege in data access, and has an exciting opportunity to co-create and deeply engage in an open data policy for non-sensitive data to ensure communities have equitable access to publicly-funded data.

    Once there is a stable data foundation to work from and guidance on how and when data should be used, I envision BHA will be able to rapidly transform data into insights.

    I see a future where data users are able to lean into data science principles, even if they're not aware of it! I'm excited for a future in which we can begin experimenting with BHA data to yield insights about the experiences of people in Colorado currently seeking or receiving care.

    The beautiful thing about this concept is anyone can participate in this process to advance BHA analytics.
  • We can create a culture where BHA staff are curious about data and want to learn more about what is available
  • We can create trust with the communities we serve so that community members have psychological safety in asking us questions
  • We can co-create meaningful outputs with our provider networks to share insights with our critical partners in the BH space

    • While I'm excited about opportunities in advanced analytics and modeling, I'm even more excited about advancing our analytics together.

    I'm ready for this.

    I am applying to be BHA's Director of Data Science because I believe in what we're doing. I am hungry to engage with BHA staff and communities to establish a data science practice that co-creates new and transformed systems and processes in support of establishing a behavioral health system that we all deserve, and that work starts now.

    Thank you for your consideration.

    jb