---
title: 'Highlander Health Institute: Innovating Clinical Trials and Care Delivery'
description: >-
  Highlander Health Institute tackles clinical trials, evidence generation, and
  care delivery with innovative, flexible approaches. By engaging a broad
  spectrum of stakeholders in clinician-led learning laboratories, we develop
  practical solutions.
category: Page
tags:
  - Institute | Resources
canonical_url: https://www.highlanderhealth.com/highlander-health-institute/
source: highlander
license: © 2026 Highlander Health. All rights reserved.
slug: highlander-health-institute
id: 2bqWpDm4HaReZS1ON1cyED
contentType: page
---

Highlander Health Institute brings new and flexible approaches to the biggest challenges in clinical trials, evidence generation, and care delivery. We engage the full stakeholder set—providers, government, academia, and industry—in clinician-led and on-the-ground learning laboratories, and we amplify our results through advocacy and convening. Our aim is to nurture pressure-tested, practical, and widely shared answers to longstanding problems in how we assess and access treatments.



Near term, we’re focused on simplifying clinical trials, and on innovative ways to make real the potential of real-world data.

## Who we are

### [Amy Abernethy, MD, PhD](/person/amy-abernethy/)

![Amy
Abernethy](https://images.ctfassets.net/bkkox68g99rn/5uwArjl2U3DkJtSLMJe0Vi/9252f2b08dbf5274c73dd439b430f25e/Amy_Abernethy_Portrait.jpg?w=2560&fm=webp&q=75)

Amy is cofounder of Highlander Health, with a healthcare career marked by changemaking in organizations ranging from Flatiron Health to Duke University School of Medicine and Verily. Prior to Verily, Amy served as the principal deputy commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 2019-2021. Her board roles span public companies such as athenahealth and CareDx to private firms including insitro and Georgiamune. In addition to her standard setting and innovation work, Amy is a hematologist/oncologist, palliative medicine physician, and author of over 500 publications and counting. 



### [Brad Hirsch, MD](/person/brad-hirsch/)

![Bradford Hirsch](https://images.ctfassets.net/bkkox68g99rn/5cDTQiyMRiZGaP8Tj1QZh1/716b1b8d096c3d3976cfd7b5e99969d2/Brad_Hirsch_Portrait.jpg?w=2560&fm=webp&q=75)

Brad is cofounder of Highlander Health, and an oncologist, trialist, entrepreneur, and product leader dedicated to driving transformation at the intersection of research and care. He most recently led product at Verily, which he joined upon Verily’s acquisition of SignalPath, a clinical research technology company he founded and led as CEO. In addition to past roles at Flatiron Health, Texas Oncology, US Oncology, and Duke University, Brad gives his passion and leadership to a wide range of philanthropic organizations including the National Outdoor Leadership School.



### [Nick Honig](/person/nick-honig/)

![Nick Honig Headshot](https://images.ctfassets.net/bkkox68g99rn/1TtaOs2ZjYFaO28PdYmkQr/f26d1d3329deefa43df675bc57f4a3d7/IMG_1042.jpeg?w=1440&fm=webp&q=75)

Nick Honig is the Executive Director of Highlander Health. An attorney by training, Nick was previously Head of Regulatory at Aetion, a company focused on generating high quality real-world evidence. Nick has also worked in Pfizer’s Chief Business Office and was a Summer Associate in the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Chief Counsel. 



## Joining forces

Highlander Health Institute is joined by Lyda Hill Philanthropies in funding our learning laboratories, and in disseminating the institute’s findings to catalyze policy and process change.

We share Lyda Hill’s fervent belief that “science is the answer” to many of our most challenging issues. This belief is at the heart of our transformational initiatives in evidence generation.

## Investment

Highlander Health Partners patiently invests in healthcare innovation, bringing our unique depth across categories, company stages, and industry verticals to spur needed change and evolution within research and care.

[Neonwave 01 12s-loop](https://videos.ctfassets.net/bkkox68g99rn/11jQDkyDFAWvoXYaluwdVC/007a68d37ea444d567f69efb0373c863/Neonwave_01_12s-loop-web.mp4)


- [Learn more](/highlander-health-partners/)