Bo Dagnall

“In a discipline crowded with either broad visionaries whom live above the messy details, or technologists whom thrive in those details but rarely can piece together the bigger picture, Bo stands out as one of those few professionals with an ability to impact both worlds. A professionally educated health informatician whom has been practicing healthcare enterprise architecture and solution development, Bo is among the most versatile and dedicated colleagues with whom I have worked. I have worked with Bo for well over a decade in a host of ever-changing roles: as his peer, as his leader, and as support under his projects. Bo has a passion and dedication to open systems and the free sharing of health information that is infectious. He leverages broad experiences around health data representation and usage to craft strategy, perspectives, viewpoints, and solutions that are mindful of business needs while remaining sensitive to individual data access, privacy, and sensitivity concerns. Bo is fiercely committed to open systems, open standards, and open data, and I cannot recall on how many occasions he has been able to influence a broader group to come around to his perspective based upon thoughtful argument and tireless work. While these factors are what I would consider his greatest strengths, they are complemented by effective presentation and interpersonal skills. Bo is able to be effective with C-suite and developers-staff alike, making his presence particularly effective. One of the things that most impresses me is his commitment to finding a best possible solution, and his professionalism and intellectual honesty in doing so. Anecdotally, Bo and I frequently found ourselves on opposite side of arguments -- not that we were fundamentally opposed, rather we each saw different paths through to "the right answer." During one particularly memorable instance, I conceded a point rather quickly as I was frustrated and reasonably comfortable with the alternative. To Bo's credit, he did not accept that result, instead probing my issue and concern until it was fully understood and vetted, and then adapted the working answer to accommodate that interest. Bo is a high-impact leader capable of working individually or leading groups, brings deep healthcare functional and technical expertise, and makes teams and organizations better.”

“Bo and I worked together on a coupl;e of student projects, and on craafting a forward-gling approach to all of HIT. I was on sabbatical as a full-time med info grad student (while also a professor of several things, and a neonatology faculty member at U Florida) under the NLM Program. So was Bo, and we partnered on several "seminal" student projects. Bo was, and is, a technical and operational genius.”