Tim K. Mackey, MAS, PhD

Tim K. Mackey, MAS, PhD is a professor at UC San Diego in the Global Health Program, Director of the Global Health and Data Policy Institute, and Co-Founder of the health and technology company S-3 Research. Dr. Mackey received funding from the FDA Office of Minority Health and Health Equity (OMHHE) in 2021 to support his project, "Using Big Data, Machine Learning, and Infoveillance Approaches to Detect and Characterize Adoptions and Adherence to PrEP Therapy Among Minority Populations."

Using advanced data mining approaches, combined with unsupervised machine learning to generate topic models about PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) for HIV, Dr. Mackey and his team were able to analyze over half a million posts and then identify and characterize diverse conversations about PrEP lived experiences from different social media users. The team identified both objective and subjective reasons as potential barriers to initiating, accessing, and adhering to PrEP. Users from various diverse backgrounds discussed different approved PrEP therapies, shared their PrEP knowledge or experiences, and asked about the use, effectiveness or side effects of products. These findings can be used to inform future efforts to advance PrEP use and adherence among racial and ethnic minority populations.

Additional information can be found on Featured Research and Principal Investigators.