Abstract: Medical researchers have long pointed to the importance of understanding the realistic picture of the patient journey: the chronological sequence of how a patient seeks and receives care from the healthcare system. However, in a fragmented healthcare system, it can be difficult to derive a comprehensive understanding patient journeys based on real utilization patterns. The talk will highlight our methodological approach to understand patients journeys from claims data using back pain as our example. A second example of patient journeys are that of infants recovering from neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS).  NOWS is a multi-system disorder involving the central and autonomic nervous systems, as well as the respiratory and gastrointestinal systems. Infants with persistent withdrawal signs are often treated with pharmacotherapeutic doses of morphine or other replacement opioids. Understanding the infants trajectories,  including their complex reactions to treatment remains a understudied and a challenging research question. The talk will highlight our first published results and future directions.