Closing the Data Divide

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 6, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The de Beaumont Foundation, in association with the Practical Playbook and Health 2.0, is calling on programmers, developers, UI/UX designers, and more to "Close the Data Divide" between public health professionals and primary care providers.

The de Beaumont Foundation works to support and transform the public health system in the United States through infrastructure investments, practice-oriented research, and innovative technology. The Practical Playbook is a de Beaumont-funded interactive, web-based tool working to improve collaboration between primary care and public health.

"Primary care providers work in data-rich environments, but too often data are collected in, and stay in, the clinical setting. At the same time, community-level data collected by public health officials rarely informs patient care decisions," said Ed Hunter, CEO of the de Beaumont Foundation. "We are committed to finding ways to share data across this divide to improve the health of our communities."

"Closing the Data Divide" launched today at the Health 2.0 Annual Fall Conference in Silicon Valley. Successful applications will be user-friendly and will be able to be integrated into existing systems, including electronic health records. The Challenge is not seeking tools for patient education or techniques for specific disease interventions.

The Challenge will be staged in two phases. In Phase I, teams can submit a written description and slide deck that describes the proposed application, its innovative qualities, and the product development plan. Five semi-finalists will be invited to participate in Phase II, in which teams will build the application and create a business development plan to support its entry into the market.

"The lack of shared data is a critical impediment to improving public health, and we recognize that innovative solutions take time to develop," said J. Lloyd Michener, MD, Principal Investigator of the Practical Playbook and Chairman of the Duke University School of Medicine's Department of Community and Family Medicine. "We see great willingness to share information, but few opportunities to do that in a way that is both efficient and effective in an already-hectic clinical environment. We look forward to having new tools that we can put to work and make a difference."

The five semi-finalists invited to participate in Phase II will receive $3,000 each. The winning application will be awarded $30,000, while first and second runners-up will receive $10,000 and $5,000 respectively. Find out more about the Challenge and register to receive more information and updates at ClosingTheDataDivide.com (www.closingthedatadivide.com/).

Since 1998, the de Beaumont Foundation has worked to transform the practice of public health in the United States. Founded by Pierre S. de Beaumont, the Foundation primarily supports practice-based projects that provide training and education to the public health workforce; build public health infrastructure; and improve information and data management through innovative technology. For more information, visit www.debeaumont.org.

The Practical Playbook: Public Health & Primary Care Together is an interactive, web-based tool that helps primary care and public health groups find productive ways to work together, from planning and implementing a project to evaluating its outcomes and finding ways to sustain it in the future. The de Beaumont Foundation, Duke University School of Medicine's Department of Community and Family Medicine, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed The Practical Playbook through robust collaboration in an effort to improve population health by bringing primary care and public health together.

Health 2.0 promotes, showcases and catalyzes new technologies in health care. We do this through a worldwide series of conferences, code-a-thons, prize challenges, and more. We also have the leading market intelligence on new health technology companies.