About the HT LAB

Independent healthcare ICT research and education

The global health community faces innumerable challenges in the quest to ensure that people worldwide have access to high-quality, affordable medical care. Natural disasters, food insecurity, poverty, communications and infrastructure problems, and population growth are just some of the issues that can undermine effective healthcare delivery in the United States and the world over. The Healthcare Innovation and Technology Lab (HIT Lab) is operating at the nexus of these global health challenges and information communication technology (ICT) solutions.

Our cross-disciplinary team of public health experts is based in New York, NY and is comprised of faculty, students, and graduates of top universities around the world. We consistently partner and collaborate with the global health community, which is also at a tipping point of rapid technological development and innovation. Together we are transforming the way we understand and address today’s complex healthcare needs.

Our Mission

HIT Lab seeks to improve the quality, affordability and accessibility of healthcare worldwide by investigating the innovative use and clinical effectiveness of information and communications technology. In partnership with others whose missions align with ours, we independently and ethically research and communicate the role technology can play in improving the provision and outcomes of healthcare.

Our Work

Research

In partnership with public, private and non-profit grant sponsors, the Lab conducts a wide array of research projects, free of bias, that investigate the innovative use and clinical effectiveness of ICT. Our efforts encompass a multitude of technologies and therapeutic areas, from mobile health (mHealth) tools for maternal and newborn care, to specialty-specific electronic health records (EHRs) for HIV, and monitors to capture activity data on elderly populationsIn line with the complex needs of healthcare delivery and evaluation, the HIT Lab’s methodologies are dynamic and all encompassing.

Education and Publications

As part of our mission we are committed to disseminating research findings and supporting the adoption of healthcare ICT in order to serve the public good. We accomplish this by developing and conducting executive seminars around the globe, presenting findings at industry conferences, publishing in peer-reviewed journals and trade media, and sharing information via social media channels.

Technology Incubation

Partners often approach us to help ascertain the most critical demands of patients, healthcare providers, and public health workers in specific geographic locations or healthcare sectors. Some partners need independent, analytical data to address questions about the market viability of ideas. To find answers, we research market dynamics for potential healthcare ICT tools and serve as an independent advisor to hone innovative ideas and launch technologies in the global public health system.

Our Values

Underpinning the HIT Lab’s work is a strong commitment to seeking innovative information and communications technology solutions; partnering and communicating with others in the scientific community; and adhering to evidence-based research and the scientific method.

Innovation

The future of healthcare rests on innovation. Our aim is to serve as an incubator of ideas that will yield much-needed reform in high-quality, affordable, and accessible healthcare provision across the globe. The HIT Lab researches pioneering improvements in ICT that can be applied in practice for positive change. Our diversity, in people, perspective, and method, is the key ingredient in our innovative approach.

Partnership

We believe the best way to achieve widespread, permanent change is through collaboration with members, sponsors, and worldwide communities whose missions align with ours. It is our constant quest to partner with those who possess the ability to transform the provision and outcomes of healthcare, and to share our insights with the scientific community through publications, conference presentations, and innovation sessions.

Evidence-based research

We believe in the scientific method. Observable events with statistical controls are the best method for demonstrating effectiveness, and driving rational health technology investment. Our conclusions are based solely on the evidence of our research. Independence is critical to our objectivity and our ethics, and we remain unbiased by the interests of others.