Health Informatics Mark Carroll University of California, Davis School of Medicine Health Informatics Program
Agenda What is Health Informatics Careers in Informatics Training in Informatics UC Davis Masters Ph.D. Certificate
What informatics is and isn t
Health Informatics The scientific field that deals with biomedical information, data, and knowledge their storage, retrieval, and optimal use for problem solving and decision making (Stanford) The science of using system-analytic tools... to develop procedures (algorithms) for management, process control, decision making and scientific analysis of medical knowledge. (Shortliffe)
The Role Health Informaticists develop, implement and maintain innovative information systems to help doctors, nurses and other health care providers make evidence-based decisions. They also create information systems that educate and aid the health care consumer.
Bridge
Sub-Sections
We are not!! Keeping the computers running Fixing the network Setting up new computers for employees Database management Trying to fix the parents computer on the phone
The Role Setting strategic direction for health information within the clinical enterprise Developing clinical knowledge management tools Supporting/leading health IT systems development, procurement, and implementation processes Evaluating health information systems and applications Consulting on changes in workflow processes Facilitating communication between IT and clinical operations
The Role It is not a cookie cutter field where all practitioners have a single defined set of competencies and skills, nor do all informaticists play the same role It is a heterogeneous field (physicians, other clinicians, non-clinicians) It comprises a range of positions involved in collecting, handling, and processing of clinical information for a variety of purposes (decision support, quality assurance, public health)
Sample Job Titles Chief Medical Information Officer Nurse Informaticist Manager/Director of Clinical Informatics Clinical Informatics Specialist Health Information Manager Clinical Documentation Specialist Data Integrity Specialist Data Quality Analyst Workflow Analyst Project Manager
Other professionals in health IT: IT professionals, often with computer science (CS) or management information systems (MIS) backgrounds Health information managers (HIM), historically associated with managing medical records departments Health science librarians All can benefit from clinical informatics training but may not work as informaticist
Where are informaticists found? Academic institutions Medical centers and medical groups Government agencies Local State National Technology & consulting firms Software vendors
Education
Offerings Masters of Health Informatics Ph.D. Certificate
Recommended Prerequisite Knowledge & Skills Basic understanding of programming Basic understanding of databases Knowledge of health care Knowledge of human diseases and conditions (or basic medical terminology) Project management skills Entrepreneurial spirit
Certificate and Masters Certificate Program in Health Informatics 19 qtr. units, rolling admissions Offered exclusively online Master s Program in Health Informatics 43 qtr. units, admits Fall quarter only Offered face-to-face in Sacramento (PT & FT options)
Curriculum: Certificate in Health Informatics Course Title Units Introduction to Health Informatics (same as MS) 4 Health Information Systems Analysis & Design 3 Clinical Data and Electronic Health Records 3 Clinical Decision Support 3 Electives: Choose 2 Public Health Informatics 3 Consumer Health Informatics 3 Telemedicine (same as MS) 4 Computer Security & Privacy in Healthcare 3 Interoperability & Health Information Exchange 3 Total Units 19-20
Thank You Mark Carroll mjcarroll@ucdavis.edu