LAUREL, MD, September 3, 2004 - The National Library of Medicine (NLM), supported by Aquilent, Inc., an IT solutions provider, received Harvard University 's prestigious Innovations in American Government Award. The award recognized ClinicalTrials.gov, the NLM web site developed as an information service of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Aquilent supported the development of the ClinicalTrials.gov in 2000 and currently supports the web site's operation.
The Innovations in American Government Awards is a program of the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University 's Kennedy School of Government. The award is administered in partnership with the Council for Excellence in Government.
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson noted that ClinicalTrials.gov is a good example of how government can improve access to vital health care information for all Americans. "It is an important element in this Administration's initiative to improve the health care system through the application of advanced health information technology," Secretary Thompson said.
ClinicalTrials.gov grew out of 1997 legislation that required HHS to broaden the public's access to information about clinical trials on a wide range of serious or life-threatening diseases by establishing a registry for both federally and privately funded trials (http://clinicaltrials.gov/). ClinicalTrials.gov is a completely confidential Web site. No registration or personal identification of any kind is required. People who search the site are not contacted by the sponsors of clinical trials or anyone else.
About Aquilent
Aquilent is an award-winning small business with a 24-year history of providing innovative information technology solutions and services to federal agencies. Aquilent improves the quality and efficiency of service to citizens, employees, and businesses through a premiere suite of solutions, including acquisition systems, web solutions and business automation. Additional information about Aquilent is available at www.aquilent.com .
Contact
Peter Fogelsanger
Aquilent, Inc.
301.939.1000
peter.fogelsanger@aquilent.com
