Biography
Unlocking data’s potential to drive equity and innovation in tech and health.
Stephanie E. Farquhar, Ph.D. M.H.S. (she/her), is a qualitative researcher who has spent the last decade working with epidemiologists, engineers and clinicians to reimagine what data can do and who it can serve. Dr. Farquhar has worked across sectors to create the kind of data innovation needed for products and policies to eliminate unfair and unjust gaps in health outcomes.
At the New York City Health Department, Dr. Farquhar co-founded and led Data for Equity, an initiative to strengthen the agency’s ability to use data to expose, understand and address health inequities. This initiative was institutionalized as a key priority in the Board of Health’s resolution to address Racism as a Public Health Crisis. She advised agency leadership on the health impact of the racial wealth gap in partnership with the New York Federal Reserve Bank. She also developed novel data products during the COVID-19 response, including a quantitative process for equitably allocating limited resources and a qualitative epidemiological surveillance system that rapidly assessed New Yorkers real-time concerns and needs.
As a member of Google’s inaugural Health Equity team, Dr. Farquhar adapted her data and equity practice to developing responsible tech and AI. She launched products that improved the Google Search experience for users seeking Medicaid and Medicare benefits and free or low-cost health care. She also shaped international healthcare AI standards in partnership with the STANding Together Data Diversity Initiative.
Dr. Farquhar founded Equitable Data Solutions, a consulting firm that supports data and AI-reliant organizations in building equitable practices into their data work.
A native Texan, Stephanie earned a BA from New York University and a PhD and MHS from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health as a Sylvia and Eddie Brown Community Health Scholar. She is the proud mom of a very opinionated teenager, an avid reader and a volunteer with the OpEd Project.
