New Associate Chief Data Sciences Officer Appointed at Nationwide Children's Hospital

May 7, 2024
Christopher Bartlett

Chris Bartlett, PhD, a principal investigator in the Steve and Cindy Rasmussen Institute for Genomic Medicine at Nationwide Children's Hospital, has been appointed associate chief data sciences officer for biomedical informatics.

Chris Bartlett, PhD, a principal investigator in the Steve and Cindy Rasmussen Institute for Genomic Medicine at Nationwide Children's Hospital, has been appointed associate chief data sciences officer for biomedical informatics.

“Dr. Bartlett will have a crucial role in democratizing data access and enabling scientists to utilize data resources effectively and securely. Dr. Bartlett and new Associate Chief Clinical Research Officer Jennifer Muszynski, MD, will collaborate to increase access to data and support more data-driven research,” said Dennis Durbin, MD, MSCE, president, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's.

In this role, Dr. Bartlett will work closely with Chief Data Sciences Officer Peter White, PhD. He will serve as chair of a multi-site research data governance committee and oversee significant high-profile projects using third-party datasets. He will also provide leadership over Nationwide Children's real-world evidence (RWE) research portfolio, positioning the institution to secure external funding and lead new RWE research projects.

“In terms of multi-site research, I will establish a multi-site research data committee to provide leadership in emerging data sharing trends including real-world evidence, which is the use of EHR [electronic health record] data to change FDA labels for drugs and medical devices,” Dr. Bartlett explained.

“In short, the two main pillars of this new position are a) to make it easier to access data by using technology and b) to enhance policies and governance for multi-site research,” he said. “AI [artificial intelligence] is a big part of the strategic plan for the Office of Data Sciences so my role is partly to leverage AI to make data available to researchers and to help craft policies that will allow Nationwide Children's to participate in more consortium grants.”

“Dr. Bartlett has demonstrated leadership and innovation throughout his career at Nationwide Children's,” Dr. White noted. “His role is essential toward advancing the Office of Data Sciences’ strategic goals including supporting biomedical informatics initiatives, fostering beneficial partnerships, and spearheading innovative technology adoption.”

About Nationwide Children's Hospital

Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report’s 2024-25 list of “Best Children’s Hospitals,” Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of America’s largest not-for-profit free-standing pediatric health care systems providing unique expertise in pediatric population health, behavioral health, genomics and health equity as the next frontiers in pediatric medicine, leading to best outcomes for the health of the whole child. Integrated clinical and research programs, as well as prioritizing quality and safety, are part of what allows Nationwide Children’s to advance its unique model of care. Nationwide Children’s has a staff of more than 16,000 that provides state-of-the-art wellness, preventive and rehabilitative care and diagnostic treatment during more than 1.8 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org