INFORMS DEI Research: Catalyzing Change Through Your Research

Bing Si (Associate Professor & QSR Council Member, Arizona State University), Jian Liu (Associate Professor & QSR Past Chair, University of Arizona)

This project introduces an innovative Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Research initiative, seamlessly weaving into existing INFORMS activities and events. Its primary goal is to enhance INFORMS DEI by involving researchers, students, and stakeholders, showcasing how Operations Research/Management Science (OR/MS) research can actively contribute to DEI within and beyond the INFORMS community. The DEI Research initiative offers a unique contribution to the INFORMS DEI Ambassador Program, leveraging the research expertise and knowledge of INFORMS members across various societies and sections to address critical DEI challenges in the real world.

DEI Promotion “Through Research Pathway”

The project aims to promote DEI “Through Research Pathway” by highlighting how INFORMS members can address challenges faced by Under-Represented Minority (URM) populations through their research skills. This not only improves the impact and visibility of the INFORMS research community in society but also aligns with the increasing recognition of DEI in professional societies. Inspired by a surge in research interests focused on public health promotion, particularly optimizing healthcare systems and mitigating health disparities, the DEI Research initiative encourages INFORMS researchers to engage in interdisciplinary projects. These projects, often employing data analytics or OR approaches, aim to investigate complex real-world systems and contribute to informed decision-making processes, reducing health disparities in the process.

For instance, the INFORMS community has significantly contributed to research that uses OR methodologies to assess resource distribution in healthcare facilities serving URM communities. This includes identifying gaps for more equitable resource allocation, thus enhancing access to healthcare services in underserved areas and addressing disparities in healthcare resource availability. Another impactful example involves data-driven disease management for chronic medical conditions disproportionately affecting the URM population. Here, researchers employ data analytics to identify high-risk populations, facilitating targeted interventions and reducing health disparities. Moreover, INFORMS researchers delve into examining the influence of social determinants of health on healthcare outcomes using data analytics, informing policy and intervention strategies to address social determinants and improve health equity. Many INFORMS members are also instrumental in enhancing telemedicine and mobile health to increase healthcare accessibility, particularly in marginalized communities.

DEI-Featured INFORMS Session (Co-Sponsored by DEIC & QSR)

The DEI Research initiative spotlighted outstanding DEI Research projects at the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting. It supported the formation and recognition of a DEI session at INFORMS, featuring faculty and student speakers from four U.S. universities. These speakers shared their research developments on a variety of DEI Research topics, spanning from addressing health disparities with quantitative frameworks and tele-screening programs to enhancing the fairness of machine learning algorithms for healthcare studies.

What’s Next?

Encouraged by the success of the DEI Research session at the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting, we plan to organize more sessions, panels, or mini symposiums on DEI Research in future INFORMS conferences. In the long term, these DEI Research initiatives aim to demonstrate how INFORMS researchers can actively contribute to promoting DEI in society by directly addressing challenges faced by underrepresented populations with OR/MS research skills, thereby enhancing the impact and visibility of the INFORMS community.