A Foot in Each World: Bridging the Divide Between Clinical Research and the Mobile Apps That Support It

Modified Project Summary/Abstract Section Santiago Arconada Alvarez, MS is an emerging leader in translational research software at Emory University who serves as the Associate Director of the AppHatchery initiative within the Georgia Clinical and Translational Science Alliance (Georgia CTSA) under the direction of Dr. Wilbur Lam, MD, PhD. The core of his productive and successful career as a Research Software Engineer is in the development of digital health platforms to support research projects. He has developed over 11 digital health solutions publicly available in domain areas such as: 1) user-center designed software for patient and provider education in pediatric cardiovascular health (HerHeart), symptom based decision-making in the perinatal period (MAMALOVE), new onset pediatric Type 1 diabetes (TypeU), and pediatric tonsillectomy surgeries (Ready for Tonsillectomy); 2) public health information dissemination with a digital resource for Tuberculosis guidelines (Georgia TB Reference Guide) sponsored by the Georgia State Department of Public Health; 3) improving health access by breaking down language barriers for a broad range of individuals with an easily accessible and quick mobile interpretation tool; 4) modernizing traditional qualitative research methodologies with a first-of-its-kind mobile app (Fabla) to conduct speech-based Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) research, increasing adoption and study compliance from participants and streamlining and enriching data collection for researchers. This Research Software Engineer (RSE) award would provide 3 years of funding to deepen his software expertise and enable him to evolve into a leader in translational research software. Specifically, he will focus on 1) enhancing data security and ensuring greater transparency in existing projects to promote reproducible research; 2) integrating advanced analytics to support Principal Investigators’ primary research goals; 3) making his platforms and methods accessible to researchers at other institutions and within the broader research software community; and 4) building capacity in the RSE community by mentoring junior engineers, taking on leadership roles in collaborative initiatives, and championing user-centered design in research. Growing into these areas will cement him as a leader to contribute significantly to NIMH’s mission of transforming our understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through innovative, scalable, and widely available software platforms, ultimately improving mental health outcomes and advancing research. Project Number: 1R50MH141887-01 | Fiscal Year: 2026 | NIH Institute/Center: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) | Principal Investigator: Santiago Arconada Alvarez | Institution: EMORY UNIVERSITY, ATLANTA, GA | Award Amount: $156,500 | Activity Code: R50 | Study Section: Special Emphasis Panel[ZRG1 MCST-M (53)] View on NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11240451