2024 Raiffa Fund Awards – Center for Health Decision Science

CHDS has announced the 2024 Howard Raiffa Fund award recipients as PhD in Health Policy doctoral students Andrea Luviano and Jacob Jameson.

Luviano’s project will identify the key steps to calculate Health Years in Total, its methodological and ethical advantages and disadvantages compared to Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALYs), and its potential future role in economic evaluation and health technology assessment. The products of Luviano’s project will be several learning tools for students and faculty and the dissemination of research inform students and researchers inside and outside the Harvard community. Luviano will be mentored by CHDS faculty member Ankur Pandya.

Jameson’s project will develop a software tool integrating causal reinforcement learning and large language models for comparative effectiveness research in AI-driven melanoma treatment. With mentorship from Soroush Saghafian, the project seeks to enhance personalized treatment strategies in melanoma care by leveraging advanced AI techniques, to address variability in treatment responses, and contribute to more effective patient care. In addition to developing the actual software tool, Jameson will develop teaching modules, user guides, interactive tutorials, and case study materials.

About the Award

The Howard Raiffa Fund was established in 1996 at the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis through the generosity of many donors wishing to honor Howard Raiffa, one of the true ‘founding fathers’ of decision science. The Fund supports the training of scholars pursuing doctoral studies in decision and risk analysis and is administered by CHDS. Following Raiffa’s model of engaged mentorship, awardees work closely with a CHDS faculty member in planning and implementing projects of their own design.