The emerging field of photonic diagnosis, monitoring, prevention, and treatment of infectious diseases is rapidly expanding. It is therefore imperative that the latest progress in this field is communicated and disseminated in a timely manner. To address this critical need, a new annual conference series, ?Photonic Diagnosis, Monitoring, Prevention, and Treatment of Infectious Diseases (PDMPT-ID)?, was founded in 2018; and its Inaugural Conference, PDMPT-ID 2018, which was held on January 19-31, 2018 in San Francisco, CA, was very successful. Building upon the success of PDMPT-ID 2018, we will continue to organize the annual conference series, PDMPT-ID 2019-2023, over the next 5-year period. The conference series will be sponsored by the International Society for Optics and Photonics, a permanently sponsoring organization. PDMPT-ID 2019 will take place on February 4-6, 2019, in San Francisco, CA; and PDMPT-ID 2020-2023 are planned for roughly the same dates of each year. The overall goal of PDMPT-ID conference is to promote state-of-the-art research and to facilitate the translation of research findings into new approaches. This conference goal will be achieved through performing the following three specific aims:
Aim 1 : To communicate and disseminate new findings in the field of PDMPT-ID. PDMPT-ID 2019 features 10 sessions of oral presentations, one panel discussion, one poster session, and many opportunities for informal discussions. Both session evaluation and post-conference evaluation will be a crucial part of the conference. The conference proceedings will be published online with open access.
Aim 2 : To increase collaborations between interdisciplinary research groups. PDMPT-ID conference brings together experts from a range of disciplines and with common interest in PDMPT-ID. The conference will emphasize opportunities for networking and collaboration by hosting single track sessions, panel discussions, informal interactions during welcome reception, coffee breaks, poster sessions, etc. A highlight of the conference is the ?Problems - Solutions? panel discussion, where clinicians will be invited to discuss the clinical problems and translational researchers and basic scientists will brainstorm the potential solutions.
Aim 3 : To supplement and enhance the training of young investigators. The attendance of young investigators will be fostered by awarding travel grants from the R13 funds, if awarded, to graduate students and postdoc trainees. To support the young investigators preparing to meet the daunting challenge of funding their research programs, a pre-conference NIH grant writing workshop will be organized jointly with sister SPIE conferences at the conference site. A special session, ?Young Investigator Competition?, is another highlight of PDMPT-ID conference. In addition, PDMPT-ID conference will offer young investigators two lunch ?Talk Tables? with invited speakers and experienced mentors to discuss career development and research topics. In summary, PDMPT-ID conference serves as a driving force to promote excellence in scientific research and accelerate the development of young investigators. NIH/NIAID R13 support will greatly ensure the quality of the program and the ultimate success of PDMPT-ID conference series.
Infectious diseases are one of the leading causes of mortality globally and over 95% of the mortality caused by infections is due to the lack of proper diagnosis and treatment. The annual conference series ?Photonic Diagnosis, Monitoring, Prevention, and Treatment of Infectious Diseases (PDMPT-ID)? brings together experts from a range of disciplines and with common interest in the field of PDMPT-ID to present and discuss scientific research and new data, with the over goal to promote excellence in research and fascinating the translation of research findings.
