Richard K. Thomas, Ph.D., has spent his entire professional career (40+ years) in health services research, marketing, planning, and business development. He is a partner in a Memphis-based consulting firm and is associated with various other research and consulting endeavors. Dr. Thomas provides consultation services to hospitals, physician practices, health plans, and other healthcare organizations in the areas of strategic planning, market research, and business development. He has authored or co-authored twenty books and numerous articles on healthcare. He was an early proponent of "health demography" and his book (co-authored with Louis Pol) "The Demography of Health and Health Care" has set the standard for the field. Dr. Thomas is currently on the faculties of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (Center for Health Systems Improvement) and Mississippi State University (Social Science Research Center). Dr. Thomas has been awarded numerous government and foundation grants and has managed several NIH grants related to health data management. Dr. Thomas holds a Ph.D. in medical sociology from Vanderbilt University. He earned an undergraduate degree in economics from Southwestern at Memphis (now Rhodes College) and master's degrees in sociology and geography from the University of Memphis.