Obituary of Rowland A. Morrow Jr.

(John) Rowland Ashmead Morrow, Jr., loving husband, father of three, and innovator in the healthcare industry passed away from complications of cancer on June 26th. He was 65.

The son of Rowland A. Morrow, attorney and U.S. intelligence official, and Mary Carbery Boyle Morrow, nurse and homemaker, John was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. He graduated from Loyola High School and Loyola College, earning a BS in Business Administration in 1981. John was an Eagle Scout.

In 1982, John married Katherine McSweeney Harman, also of Baltimore. Together they raised triplets, Jillian Harman Morrow, Danielle Harman Morrow (Kamal Singhrao), and Alexander Harman Morrow, now all of Boston. During their children’s young lives, they lived in Hunt Valley (Maryland), England, France, and the Cayman Islands. They traveled extensively in Europe while the children were homeschooled. The family settled in Belfast, Maine in 2005.

John spent his career building business intelligence solutions for the healthcare industry. A lifelong advocate of better healthcare outcomes, he created 100 Top Hospitals: Benchmarks for Success while a senior executive at HCIA, Inc. in the 1990s. An industry-respected rating report for hospital performance, 100 Top Hospitals is issued annually by Premier, Inc.

During his time at HCIA, John served as CEO of CHKS Limited, HCIA’s UK arm. He joined HeathGrades, Inc, as Senior Vice President of Strategic Development in 2003. Beginning in 2006, John formed several new companies. They included The Ratings Guy, LLC, a rating service for consumer products and services; iVantage Health Analytics, Inc., a hospital analytics company; and Franklin Trust Ratings, LLC, an online database of hospital and provider performance data. John served as Managing Director of Franklin Trust until his death.

John is survived by his wife, children, two sisters, A. Leslie Morrow of Chapel Hill, NC, and Carbery Morrow of Parker, CO, one paternal aunt, and many dear friends and cousins. He is predeceased by his parents and brother, Bruce Morrow.  A Celebration of Life will be planned later in the summer.

Memories and condolences may be shared with the family at www.ripostafh.com