Betsy L. Humphreys, M.L.S. Closed Now

Betsy L. Humphreys is a highly respected leader in biomedical informatics, health data systems, and medical library science. She is best known as the Deputy Director of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM) from 2005 until her retirement in 2017, where she played a central role in advancing medical information standards, digital health systems, and global health knowledge dissemination.

Holding a Master of Library Science (M.L.S.) degree, Humphreys began her career at NLM in the 1970s and rose through leadership positions, eventually serving as Acting Director of NLM in 2015–2016 before the appointment of Dr. Patricia Brennan.

Her work focused heavily on health data interoperability, ensuring that clinical data could be shared, understood, and used across different systems. She was instrumental in the development and implementation of UMLS (Unified Medical Language System), a critical resource for improving the exchange of biomedical information.

Humphreys also played a key role in advancing clinical terminology standards, including SNOMED CT, LOINC, and RxNorm, which remain fundamental in electronic health record (EHR) systems worldwide. She was a driving force behind federal policies promoting health information exchange and the integration of health IT into everyday care delivery.

Her contributions earned her recognition as one of the most influential women in health informatics, and she was elected as a Fellow of the American College of Medical Informatics (ACMI).