ROBERTSON RESEARCH INSTITUTE NAMED FINALIST IN
COMPUTERWORLD HONORS AWARD
SAGINAW, Mich., May 21, 2004 — Robertson Research Institute (RRI) is one of six finalists in the Medicine Category for the Computerworld Honors 21st Century Achievement Award. The winner will be announced June 7, 2004 in an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. RRI is being recognized for NxOpinion, a unique user-friendly diagnostic decision support tool that will be offered free of charge to physicians in developing countries and rural areas beginning in 2005.
Nominated by Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, the case study at Robertson Research Institute is part of a collection of nominees that includes over 250 of the year’s most innovative applications of technology from 33 states and 26 countries. Microsoft is an advisor in the development of the software.
“Robertson Research Institute is using information technology to make great strides and remarkable social achievement in Medicine,” said Daniel Morrow, Executive Director of the Computerworld Honors Program.
According to Dr. Joel Robertson, Pharm.D., founder of Robertson Research Institute, NxOpinion is a unique convergence of software, hardware and mobile technology designed to merge all available diagnostic information to help physicians better assess and treat patients’ illnesses regardless of their location, or the physician’s resources and facilities. Unlike any other decision support tools available today, NxOpinion is extensively interactive with a weighted inference engine that allows physicians to hone their diagnoses as more information is inputted and a virtual dialogue takes place between NxOpinion and the physician. The software continuously scans the relationships between evidence entered by the physician and all of the diseases in its profile. NxOpinion can then suggest, or request, the next piece of information that would make the most difference in getting closer to the best diagnosis, quickly and efficiently.
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NxOpinion, currently in the pilot stage, was successfully tested in the Dominican Republic and in the U.S. More pilots are planned for 2004-2005 as the software is perfected. Full distribution to developing countries will be in 2005, free of charge.
“We are delighted to be considered for the Computerworld Honors award in the Medicine category,” said Dr. Robertson. “Our finalist status reflects the dedication of the entire NxOpinion team toward bringing this humanitarian vision to life. We enjoyed tremendous cooperation on this project because we are in it to save lives and revolutionize medicine, not to make a profit.”
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Robertson Research Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving global health care through innovation and access. Since its founding, RRI has focused on creating visionary health care solutions through the merging of technology and medicine. In addition to the NxOpinion program, RRI offers a comprehensive online brain chemistry optimization profile utilizing over 270,000 variables, which is used by clinicians to enhance their patients’ mental health. Dr. Robertson is a neuropharmacologist with over 25 years experience as a clinician and researcher. He is also an internationally known author, lecturer and consultant in the areas of brain chemistry and health care innovation.
Computerworld Honors Program searches for and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated vision and leadership as they strive to use information technology in innovative ways across ten categories: Business and Related Services; Education and Academia; Environment, Energy and Agriculture; Finance, Insurance and Real Estate; Government and Non-Profit Organizations; Manufacturing; Media, Arts and Entertainment; Medicine; Science; and Transportation.