Dive into the exciting world of health information technology and management with a career in health information. Health informatics provides the perfect blend of computer and information science, driving the future of healthcare. From data analytics and information management to electronic medical records and patient surveys, the field aims to transform patient care and streamlines hospital workflows through innovative medical, technical, and data innovations.
No matter the pursuit, an Applied Health Informatics Certificate from the University of Providence can provide a groundwork for current or aspiring health informatics professions seeking knowledge and understanding in the emerging field and rapidly evolving healthcare informatics field. Through a curated curriculum and industry-experienced faculty, graduates of the certificate will be able to apply their skills as they build toward a career in one of these five careers in health informatics:
Health Informatics Rundown
Health informatics is described by the American Medical Informatics Association as a multidisciplinary field focused on applying principles of computer and information science toward the advancement of life sciences, research, health education, public health and patient care.
When applied in a healthcare setting such as a hospital clinic or providers office, health informatics focuses on utilizing leading tools in medical and information technology such as data analytics, information management software, computer systems, and electronic medical records to achieve objectionable goals in advancing patient care, modernizing workflows, and more.
Careers in health informatics offer a dynamic, interdisciplinary reach that utilizes various tools and strategies to best leverage healthcare technology, data, and information. Given the wide berth of opportunities within the field, informatics skills can be applied across multiple healthcare disciplines, including entry, mid, senior, and executive level paths.
Given the professions extensive growth rate followed by new and emerging investments in informatics technologies, the careers in health informatics are expected to advance and expand.
Careers in Health Informatics
A career in health informatics can extend form entry level positions in medical records management to senior or executive level positions as chief medical information officers. Many informatics positions include working closely with clinical and administrative professionals across organizations and involve a combined knowledge and understanding of both medical and information technology competencies. Depending on the role, additional proficiencies, educations, or certifications may be required.
Explore some common health informatics positions:
Nurse Informaticist
Nursing informaticists are licensed, registered nurses who work closely with information technology and its role in clinical and administrative nursing care. Nurse informaticists combine skills in nursing, communication, information technology and computer science to develop, enhance and improve nursing systems for enhanced clinical delivery. Specifically, this career in health informatics works with health records, clinical technologies, and telehealth.
Health Informatics Specialist
A health informatics specialist is a healthcare professional who works closely with patient records and data to synchronize and improve medical records management, organization, and accuracy. These specialists often work for large healthcare organizations, independent physician, specialist offices, or insurance companies who handle large quantities of health data. This career in health informatics can be a good starting point for those interesting in working alongside medical records or pursuing a future career in informatics.
Health Informatics Analyst
A health informatics analyst is a trained informatics and analytics specialist who works with large datasets to build, develop, and deploy models and reports concerning healthcare information and data collected by or processed by healthcare organizations. Data collected, managed and presented can be used to drive decision making at mid, senior, and executive levels and can spur changes within an organization based on findings. This career in health informatics is ideal for math and statistic inclined professionals seeking to work with data.
Health Informatics Manager
Informatics managers are leaders responsible for the granular management and operation of informatics processes within a healthcare organization. At the core of their position is to ensure organizations, providers, nurses and administrators have access to data, that the data their accessing is accurate, and that all data is secured and in compliance with local, federal, and company policy. This career in health informatics is ideal for healthcare administrators with experience in the informatics field who wish to advance their career.
Chief Informatics Officer
Considered to be the pinnacle of the health informatics industry, chief informatics officers or chief medical information officers are responsible for the operations and managements of an entire healthcare organization or family of organizations informatics operations. Often head by senior healthcare administrators or information technology specialists, this career in health informatics requires intensive skills, extensive experience, and lots of education.
Starting a Health Informatics journey
The University of Providence’s Applied Health Informatics Certificate provides an educational pathway for current healthcare workers or aspiring informatics professionals seeking to better comprehend the core principals and foundations of healthcare informatics in pursuit of a career.
Skills learned in the health informatics certificate can be applied immediately to most healthcare positions and can be leveraged by healthcare professionals in future or adjacent career positions.
Graduates of the certificate will be able to:
- Translate clinical needs into technological solutions
- Advocate for data quality and standards at the local, state, federal and organizational level
- Improve patient use of new technologies
- Accelerate health information tools adoption
- Be an informatics resource
- Advocate for consumer-centric health systems
- Promote health information technologies for learning health systems
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
