The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute in Washington, D.C., appointed Nakela Cook, MD, executive director, effective April 15.
Dr. Cook comes to the institute from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, a part of the National Institutes of Health, where she was a senior scientific officer and chief of staff. At the instate, she spearheaded its research strategy and implemented initiatives in several arenas, including precision medicine, data science and sickle cell disease.
A cardiologist, she was CMO of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's cardiovascular sciences division and an attending cardiologist at the Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C.
Dr. Cook succeeds Josephine P. Briggs, MD, who has served as interim executive director since Nov. 1, 2019.
Authorized by Congress in 2010, the institute is an independent nonprofit organization that funds research on evidence-based healthcare practices.