About

Ravi Bapna is the Curtis L. Carlson Chair Professor in Business Analytics and Information Systems and serves as the Academic Director of the Carlson Analytics Lab at the Carlson School of Management. He is closely affiliated with the MS in Business Analytics program and the Carlson Analytics Lab, where graduate students study a broad range of data analysis techniques and apply them to real business problems. These students are skilled in exploratory data visualization, predictive analytics techniques, programming, data engineering, machine learning methods, and more, emerging as data science professionals. Partner organizations have the opportunity to work with these talented students while supporting the educational mission of the programs. The faculty involved with the Analytics for Good Institute, including Professor Bapna, bring expertise from across the Carlson School and beyond, including fields such as computer science, econometrics, strategy, and causal experimentation. The institute emphasizes impact, engagement, and collaboration with industry partners to leverage analytics for social good.

Research topics

• Political Science
• Medicine
• Computer Science
• Pharmacology
• Emergency medicine
• Medical education
• Endocrinology
• Internal medicine
• Business
• Knowledge management

Selected publications

• Pharmacogenomics Education, Research and Clinical Implementation in the State of Minnesota

  Pharmacogenomics · 2021 · 21 citations

  • Computer Science
  • Political Science
  • Medical education

  Several healthcare organizations across Minnesota have developed formal pharmacogenomic (PGx) clinical programs to increase drug safety and effectiveness. Healthcare professional and student education is strong and there are multiple opportunities in the state for learners to gain workforce skills and develop advanced competency in PGx. Implementation planning is occurring at several organizations and others have incorporated structured utilization of PGx into routine workflows. Laboratory-based and translational PGx research in Minnesota has driven important discoveries in several therapeutic areas. This article reviews the state of PGx activities in Minnesota including educational programs, research, national consortia involvement, technology, clinical implementation and utilization and reimbursement, and outlines the challenges and opportunities in equitable implementation of these advances.

  DOI

• Comparison of Diabetes Medications Used by Adults With Commercial Insurance vs Medicare Advantage, 2016 to 2019

  JAMA Network Open · 2021 · 88 citations

  • Medicine
  • Internal medicine
  • Emergency medicine

  Importance: Glucagonlike peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA), sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i), and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4i) are associated with low rates of hypoglycemia, and postmarketing trials of GLP-1RA and SGLT2i demonstrated that these medications improved cardiovascular and kidney outcomes. Objective: To compare trends in initiation of treatment with GLP-1RA, SGLT2i, and DPP-4i by older adults with type 2 diabetes insured by Medicare Advantage vs commercial health plans. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective cohort study used administrative claims data from a deidentified database of commercially insured and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. Adults aged 58 to 66 years with type 2 diabetes who filled any medication prescription to lower glucose levels from January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2019, were compared between groups. Exposure: Enrollment in a Medicare Advantage or commercial health insurance plan. Main Outcomes and Measures: The odds of initiating GLP-1RA, SGLT2i, and DPP-4i treatment were examined for Medicare Advantage vs commercial insurance beneficiaries using 3 separate logistic regression models adjusted for year and demographic and clinical factors. These models were used to calculate adjusted annual rates of medication initiation by health plan. Results: A total of 382 574 adults with pharmacologically treated type 2 diabetes (52.9% men; mean [SD] age, 62.4 [2.7] years) were identified, including 172 180 Medicare Advantage and 210 394 commercial beneficiaries. From 2016 to 2019, adjusted rates of initiation of GLP-1RA, SGLT2i, and DPP-4i treatment increased among all beneficiaries, from 2.14% to 20.02% for GLP-1RA among commercial insurance beneficiaries and from 1.50% to 11.44% among Medicare Advantage beneficiaries; from 2.74% to 18.15% for SGLT2i among commercial insurance beneficiaries and from 1.57% to 8.51% among Medicare Advantage beneficiaries; and from 3.30% to 11.71% for DPP-4i among commercial insurance beneficiaries and from 2.44% to 7.68% among Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. Initiation rates for all 3 drug classes were consistently lower among Medicare Advantage than among commercial insurance beneficiaries. Within each calendar year, the odds of initiating GLP-1RA treatment ranged from 0.28 (95% CI, 0.26-0.29) to 0.70 (95% CI, 0.65-0.75) for Medicare Advantage and commercial insurance beneficiaries, respectively; SGLT2i, from 0.21 (95% CI, 0.20-0.22) to 0.57 (95% CI, 0.53-0.61), respectively; and DPP-4i, from 0.37 (95% CI, 0.34-0.39) to 0.73 (95% CI, 0.69-0.78), respectively (P < .001 for all). The odds of starting GLP-1RA and SGLT2i increased with income; for an income of $200 000 and higher vs less than $40 000, the odds ratio for GLP-1RA was 1.23 (95% CI, 1.15-1.32) and for SGLT2i was 1.16 (95% CI, 1.09-1.24). Conclusions and Relevance: These findings suggest that Medicare Advantage beneficiaries may be less likely than commercially insured beneficiaries to be treated with newer medications to lower glucose levels, with greater disparities among lower-income patients. Better understanding of nonclinical factors contributing to treatment decisions and efforts to promote greater equity in diabetes management appear to be needed.

  DOI

Frequent coauthors

• Nilay D. Shah

  8 shared

• Joseph S. Ross

  Yale University

  8 shared

• Rozalina G. McCoy

  University of Maryland, Baltimore

  8 shared

• Holly K. Van Houten

  WinnMed

  6 shared

• Víctor M. Montori

  6 shared

• Megan Weaver

  Twin Cities Orthopedics

  4 shared

• Yihong Deng

  Mayo Clinic in Arizona

  4 shared

• Helen M. Parsons

  University of Minnesota

  4 shared

Awards & honors

• 2017 MBA Roundtable Innovator Award
• 2019 Innovations That Inspire award by AACSB
• 2021 INFORMS Information Systems Society Design Science Awar…
• 2021 Innovations That Inspire Award from AACSB
• University of Minnesota's Innovation Impact Case Award honor…

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