Plenary Session and Keynote Address

Monday, September 29
8:30 a.m.–noon

Keynote Address

Christopher Murray, MD, DPhil, Institute Director
Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
University of Washington

GIS in Health Metrics and Evaluation

Dr. Christopher Murray is the first director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).
A physician and health economist, he is a former executive director of the Evidence and Information for Policy Cluster at the World Health Organization and led the work with Alan Lopez on the pioneering Global Burden of Disease project.

IHME’s mission is to monitor global health conditions and health systems as well as evaluate interventions, initiatives, and reforms. According to IHME, multiple global health efforts have sprung up over the past several decades as health spending has risen to unprecedented heights, accounting for 9 % of total economic output. Yet a lack of objective, comparable, and comprehensible information on health hinders these various efforts from achieving their highest aims.

Dr. Murray will provide an update on IHME’s formation and initiatives. He will also discuss opportunities and roles for the health GIS user community in health metrics and evaluation, with special emphasis on increasing data dissemination and creating tools that equip others with the capacity to assess health conditions and health system performance.

Featured Speaker

Tom Vair, Executive Director, Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre
Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada

Co-presenter: Paul Beach, Manager, Community Geomatics Centre
Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, Canada

Stimulating GIS Health Innovation in Canada

The Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre (SSMIC), a non-profit organization founded in 1999, has a unique vision of stimulating community economic growth through the development of strategies that leverage technical innovations across the entire community using data sharing and geomatics. The centre is currently stimulating GIS innovations across governmental and private sector organizations including public health, hospitals, emergency services, utilities, and various community organizations. With over 50 partners, the centre has witnessed incredible gains for the participating communities.

Mr. Vair will share his vision on how he believes other communities across the world can succeed in replicating the centre’s mission using similar strategies of GIS innovation. Mr. Vair is an experienced, high-tech professional who has worked in senior management at software and internet technology companies. He also serves on the Ontario Research and Innovation Council.