Master of Science in Health Informatics and Analytics

This foundation course addresses essential elements of health informatics. Students will study facets of this evolving field and their relationship with all aspects of health care. As a foundational course, students will explore the relationship of data and information; informatics skills; the current state of health care information systems; and specialized applications of health informatics.

This course provides an overview of information management, health care information systems, and the strategic applications of information systems in health care organizations. The course will cover the following major areas: the evolution and role of health care information systems in the United States, health care information technology management and strategic planning, the system development life cycle, information technology value and investment, data governance, challenges in managing health care information systems, and regulatory compliance and standards. Topics such as the use of analytics and emerging technologies to support informed decision making and maximize diverse patients’ experiences will be also explored.

This course defines the role of leadership in effectively managing multiple projects to achieve the organization’s goals. Students will learn the key elements of planning, execution, monitoring, and controlling the variables of a project as well as multiple projects simultaneously. The course includes project management theory, processes, quality control, and communication with stakeholders. There is emphasis on practical application of project management theories and management of resources and priorities.

This course examines technical aspects of health informatics such as the development of functional and technical requirements as well as the design of data structures and business logic. Technology topics such as networking, systems virtualization, security and web- based application development are addressed. Students explore best practices in cost- effective technology design. Prerequisite: HIA 601.

Students are introduced to the technology tools and methods associated with data governance, metadata design, data warehousing and business intelligence. Data transformation technologies used to turn transactional data into business intelligence models are explored. The course also addresses the technical aspects of how to secure technology platforms.Prerequisite: HIA 601.

Principles of health data governance are addressed from a management perspective. There is a focus on how stakeholders can use big data models to make better financial and clinical decisions. The course also explores the legal and regulatory aspects of health data governance and information exchange including issues at the consumer, organizational, local, state, national and global level. Prerequisites: HIA 601 and HIA 612.

This course explores data analytics: tools, techniques, data and data visualization. The course content includes the principles of the data analytics process; open source and free software; and the differences between a database and a database management system. The course includes different modalities of data visualization and decision support. Prerequisite: HIA 601.

This course explores the application of fundamental statistical methods to the health care environment. Course content includes both descriptive and inferential methods including data analysis, statistical estimation, regression analysis, analysis of variance, hypothesis testing and analysis of longitudinal data. Students will analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics informatics, computer-based programming, and software.

This course provides an introduction to epidemiology for students majoring in any aspect of public health. The focus will be on the principles and methods of epidemiologic investigation, including describing the patterns of illness in populations and research designs for investigating the etiology of disease. Students will examine quantitative measures to determine risk, association, and procedures for standardization of rates. Prerequisite: HIA 625 and Faculty Advisor Approved..

This course examines the essential elements of writing grant proposals and research papers. Students will learn how to develop a hypothesis, conduct a literature search, guidance in completing key components of a research study and strategies and tips for conveying information in an oral presentation. Throughout the course, students will learn tips on how to write for a scientific audience. Prerequisites: HIA 601 and HIA 620.

This course explores the roles of clinical providers in the adoption of transformative information technology. There is a focus on the interdisciplinary use of advanced informatics solutions to improve health outcomes. Students examine ways in which providers contribute to the development of knowledge systems and clinical content in informatics applications. Prerequisites: HIA 601, HIA 610, HIA 612, and HIA 615.

This course examines progressive topics in biomedical informatics. Emphasis is on the use of these technologies in addressing issues related to clinical care improvement and population health. This advanced course also addresses progressive informatics topics such as biobank data and integration of phenotypes into models of care. Prerequisites: HIA 601, HIA 610, HIA 612, HIA 615, and HIA 640.

This capstone course will highlight topics, issues, and skills learned during the completion of the health informatics coursework. The course will address cutting edge components related to data analytics and data visualization in all aspects of the healthcare industry. The final project will showcase the student’s application of the skills and knowledge developed throughout the program. Prerequisite: Successful completion of MSHIA program core courses.