Fickenscher received his medical degree from the University of North Dakota in 1978. He said he developed an interest in health IT in the 1980s while in family practice in his home state of North Dakota and working for the Center for Rural Health, which he founded at his alma mater in Grand Forks. He later served as the assistant dean, president and CEO of the Michigan State University Center for Medical Studies in Kalamazoo. He became chief medical officer of WebMD in 1998. He has since worked in executive roles at Computer Sciences Corp. and most recently served as the London-based executive vice president of international healthcare for Perot Systems, which was acquired last year by Dell. His title there is global leader of international healthcare and his duties include publishing the Dell Weekly Washington Report, a sometimes-snarky e-mail newsletter on healthcare IT industry policy trends.
Fickenscher said he will step down at Dell effective April 15. His new consulting firm, Creo Strategic Solutions, will be based in Bend, Ore.
Fickenscher ranked No. 12 on the Modern Physician's annual ranking of the 50 Most Powerful Physician Executives in 2007.
