Health Datapalooza 2012

Abstract

The goal of the Health Datapalooza 2012 is liberate data. IT IS A great time to be an innovator at the intersection of data and healthcare according to the panelists at the 2012 Health Data Initiative Forum—aka the Health Datapalooza—which was held in Washington DC at the Convention Center on June 5–6, 2012. The Health Data Initiative, originally launched in 2010 by the Institute of Medicine and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is a public–private collaboration that encourages innovators to utilize health data to develop applications that raise awareness of health and health system performance and spark community action to improve health. The 2012 Forum is the third annual event and is the largest one yet. The goal of the Health Datapalooza is to showcase the best and brightest new applications using data from government and other sources. Innovators presented their technologies to the audience, describing how it uses health data and makes a meaningful impact on health. This year the attendees included over 1600 leaders from the White House, federal agencies, investment and venture capital sectors, academia, social service organizations, public health communities, information technology firms, business and health care delivery systems who came together to make data actionable. Over 100 applications and Web sites, all powered by open data were presented. Here are some of the best new applications featured at the forums, in breakout sessions, or in the exhibit hall. Although some of the sites require users to register, most are free and easy to use. Symcat (http://symcat.com/) is an application designed by two Johns Hopkins Medical School classmates to help cyberchondriacs—or people who search the Internet about worrisome symptoms (most of us) understand what conditions might be causing those symptoms and provide immediate, customized information for those searchers. It is