Applied health informatics is the interdisciplinary study of healthcare and information technology. Informatics uses health records and data as a primary source of improvement in patient care and outcomes. Over the last ten years, informatics has grown alongside the digitization of medical records and the streamlining of data software – and is now one of the healthcare industry’s fastest-growing fields.
Why Become Certified In Applied Health Informatics
Receiving a certification in applied health informatics can open a variety of doors in the healthcare field. As a stand-alone certificate, it can be used to directly enter the field as a medical records specialist or medical informaticist. When paired with an additional certificate or degree, the certification can help bolster existing skills while helping to apply a more data-focused approach to care. A health informatics degree can be used by healthcare administrators, registered nurses, medical assistants, and more.
Key Applied Health Informatics Skills & Concepts
Healthcare informatics employs the use of health records and health data to drive better decisions in patient care and system improvement. While health informatics can be applied to multiple different healthcare disciplines, its core themes focus on the application of data-driven solutions to healthcare problems – following through the progression of planning, staging, implementing, and maintaining these solutions. Graduates of the program will be able to apply these skills and more:
- Translate clinical/operational needs into initial design and improvement of technology solutions.
- Improve outcomes by advocating for data quality and standards compliance.
- Improve patient/consumer use of existing and emerging technologies.
- Accelerate the adoption of health information and communication tools and technologies.
- Be an organizational resource for the application of informatics concepts.
- Advocate for health information systems that reflect consumers’ needs, values, and preferences.
- Promote the use of health information and communication technologies as foundational for a learning health system that includes active engagement of health care consumers.
University of Providence Applied Health Informatics Program Overview
The Applied Health Informatics Curriculum is designed for working professionals to learn key skills and valuable insights about the emerging role of health informatics in an online learning environment. The programs dynamic course design and learning model delivers four courses over two semesters, totaling 12 credit hours. What’s more, the health informatics certificate can be completed in just eight months.
Enrolled students can expect to learn not just the fundamentals of informatics but how informatics can be applied across various healthcare professions and disciplines. Students take four classes – exploring, applying, reading, and revealing informatics – packed with valuable information on a variety of informatics topics. Topics covered in these courses include but are not limited to:
- The foundations of data
- Data standards
- Health informatics terminology
- Clinical information systems
- Human technology design and interaction
- Health information technology (HIT) useability and HIT-related safety issues
- Adoption of HIT, its implementation, methodology, management, and principles.
- Various data visualization tools, tables, and charts
- Data integrity standards, and security
- eClinical Quality measures
After completing these courses, students will graduate from the programs with a certificate in Applied Health Informatics, which can be used across various healthcare careers.
Start Your Journey to a Career in Applied Health Informatics
A certificate in applied health informatics can be earned in just eight months after enrolling in a fall (August) or spring (January) intake. Offered as a 100% online program, students progress through each course on their own time, making it an ideal program for full-time workers and workers with third-shift or off-shift jobs. Learn more about the certificate, including eligibility, enrollment information, and specific curriculum breakdowns on the University of Providences Applied Health Informatics Certificate webpage.
