Health Information Technology and Policy Expert, Christopher Boone, Joins Health Data Consortium as Executive Director

WASHINGTON, Oct. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Health Data Consortium (HDC) announced today the appointment of Christopher Boone, Ph.D., as its new executive director effective November 3. Dr. Boone is a recognized expert in health systems design, health informatics, health IT policy, and the use of health data to improve health outcomes. Throughout his career, he has applied his deep understanding of the value of using electronic health data to generate clinical and scientific evidence that informs public policy, quality improvement, and the implementation of patient-centered outcomes research efforts.

Dr. Boone will be responsible for leading Health Data Consortium through its next phase of growth as a public-private partnership working to foster the availability and innovative use of open health data to improve health and healthcare. Dr. Boone's experience creating and deploying health data systems from the ground up and championing open health data policies will continue to drive HDC and its members closer to achieving its mission to liberate health data in order to ignite innovation and improve the health of the nation.

"We have the ability to apply insights from health data to improve patient care, research, and the health of individuals and populations, as at no other time in history," said Dr. Boone. "The changes needed to improve health and healthcare in our country will require action from across both the private and public sectors. With its growing and diverse membership base, Health Data Consortium is uniquely positioned to catalyze this healthcare transformation as the preeminent knowledge source and convener for the open health data movement. I am proud to join the charge at this critical time and to work with HDC's members to accelerate progress and navigate through these changes."

"Over the past few years, Health Data Consortium has evolved to become a strong voice in the community bringing attention to and fostering the liberation and use of health data. The organization is poised to embark on its next stage of growth," said Dwayne Spradlin, who will step down from his post as interim CEO and continue to serve on the HDC Board of Directors. "It is with great excitement that we welcome a true leader and health data evangelist, Chris Boone, to guide the Health Data Consortium's efforts."

Previously, Dr. Boone designed, built and implemented health information technology systems for hospitals. His experience includes leading major big data efforts such as a quality outcomes and clinical data registry program for the American Heart Association. Most recently, Dr. Boone was a vice president at Avalere Health, a health policy and strategy consultancy, where he led major engagements focused on data access, data availability, and data generation for professional medical societies, consumer advocacy groups, and life sciences organizations.

About the Health Data Consortium
The Health Data Consortium is a collaboration among government, non-profit, and private sector organizations working to foster the availability and innovative use of data to improve health and healthcare. The Consortium advocates with data sources to promote best practices and information sharing; and works with businesses, entrepreneurs, and academia to help them understand how to use data to develop new products, services, apps, and research insights. Learn more at www.healthdataconsortium.org or @hdconsortium on Twitter.

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SOURCE Health Data Consortium