Visualizing.org — the new open collaboration data visualization hub created by Seed Media Group and GE — recently launched a design competition in collaboration with Research Centers in Minority Institutions, part of the National Institutes of Health.
The “health disparities challenge” focused on the gaps in health and healthcare in what RCMI refers to as priority populations — those with unique healthcare needs or issues that require special attention. Those areas can include cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, HIV/AIDS and other conditions that disproportionately impact minority and other medically underserved populations. It’s the same type of focus that GE is taking in its healthymagination business initiative, which also is looking for ways to address healthcare gaps for undeserved communities while simultaneously decreasing costs and improving quality.
The winner, announced today, is Isao Matsunami, whose entry, Unequal Pair of Dice, is seen below. As the graphic asks, “Is it just a toss of the dice whether or not you die of certain diseases?” Maybe, or maybe the dice are loaded.
It’s a gamble: Click to enlarge. GE provides the grand prize of $5,000.
Florian Kraeutli received an Honorable Mention for Visualizing Differences in Healthcare. As you can see in the screen grab below, the light gray block toward the top of the right column depicts the differences in HIV prevalence among Caucasians and African Americans.
Gray day: Click to enlarge. The design won for its “clarity and interaction design,” the judges said.
As with all of our recent data visualizations, GE’s ongoing goal is to take what can be intimidating amounts of scientific data and turn it into usable information that can drive action and impact people’s lives.
Visualizing.org was launched to continue that effort. The site is an open collaboration that looks for the best ideas, no matter what their source – much in the same way that GE’s $200 million ecomagination Challenge seeks out new technology innovation from all over the globe. Visualizing.org provides a free resource for designers and students looking for data about world issues — such as climate change and global health — and offers a platform for the creative community to share visualizations with each other and the public under a Creative Commons non-commercial license.
* See more data visualizations on GE Reports
