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Applied Health Informatics (online)

Applied Health Informatics

"This is the way healthcare is going to be."
Patricia Abbott, PhD, RN, FAAN

In 1989, Patricia Abbott was three credits short of graduating with her BSN degree. Luckily, her advisor, who was piloting a "Nurses and Computers" course, came to her rescue. Abbott was offered the chance to earn three independent study credits, finish her degree—and discover her love for health information technology. "It was like someone opened my eyes," she remembers. "I said, 'This is the way healthcare is going to be.'" More

Program
Overview

Program Overview

Completed Application Deadline

June 1 for fall entry

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Academic Manual

Program Disclosure

Improving Patient Care Through Health Information Technology

The Johns Hopkins University’s online Applied Health Informatics program, jointly offered through the schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health, provides an exciting, novel career opportunity for healthcare professionals looking to leverage health information technologies (HIT) toward better patient care. The Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 expects the need for HIT specialists to grow steadily through 2018, as organizations respond to federal mandates to implement HIT in their healthcare delivery systems.

Clearly, skilled HIT practitioners will be required to manage this increasing reliance on technological capabilities to manage health information and its secure exchange between consumers, providers, government organizations, quality entities, and insurers. At Hopkins, the Applied Health Informatics program can position you ahead of the curve.

Those who complete the Hopkins Applied Health Informatics program:

Enjoy careers as clinical analysts, consultants, system designers, data quality managers, project managers, project designers, educators, and trainers
Specialize in principles of effective and efficient HIT systems design, workflow facilitation with HIT, transformative approaches to health and healthcare delivery, and influencing and effecting change in healthcare environments
Work in hospitals, accountable care organizations, ambulatory care facilities, research facilities, HIT corporations, and government agencies

The 12-credit-hour Applied Health Informatics Program is delivered online and will be completed in nine months. The final two terms of the program (16 weeks) require an 8-hour-a-week practicum experience in a HIT environment local to the student. The practicum cannot be completed in the place of employment.

Program
Requirements

Program Requirements

Admissions requirements for the online, 9-month program include:

A minimum of a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
At least one year of experience in a health-related field
Official college/university transcripts from prior coursework
A statement of purpose which is outlined in the application
Two letters of recommendation (preference is one academic and one professional)
A resume
Successful completion of the free online course, "Introduction to Online Learning,” offered by the Bloomberg School of Public Health before registering for any courses

All applications will be reviewed by a faculty Admissions Committee.

Full
Curriculum

Full Curriculum

Admissions requirements for the online, 9-month program include a minimum of a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and at least one year of experience in a health-related field. All students must complete the free online course, “Introduction to Online Learning,” offered by the Bloomberg School of Public Health before registering for any courses.

School of Nursing Courses

NR.300.601 Principles and Applications in Telehealth for Chronic Disease Management

Various technologies and the expansion of broadband connectivity around the globe are facilitating the provision of health and healthcare services to individuals in distant locations. The convergence and integration of technologies and connectivity combined with an aging society and increasing prevalence of chronic disease call for new models of health service delivery via telehealth to enable faster, more effective and more responsive care. This course will cover the basics, the benefits and the challenges of using telehealth technologies to address pressing health issues, with a particular focus on chronic disease and aging societies. The use of telehealth modalities, while beneficial, brings with it a number of important clinical, cost, ethical, and legal challenges. Strategies for addressing challenges, meeting the demands of professional practice, regulatory, financial, and legal requirements, facilitating collaborative team-based interaction within a patient-centric model will be addressed. Participants in this course will learn about the technologies available for use in providing telehealth services, the circumstances when they should (and should not) be used and important ethical, legal, and financial issues to consider before employing upon telehealth initiatives. Student will also learn about relevant standards and practice guidelines for telehealth, and discuss the use of telehealth in a clinically effective, patient-centered manner. Prerequisites: ME.600.903 and 600.905 Corequisite: NR.300.603

NR.300.603 Applied Health Informatics Practicum I

This 8 week practicum experience will be individualized to provide the student with opportunities to develop the diverse ROLES and SKILLS of a health care informatician. Relevant role foci include: health IT expert, consultant, researcher, change agent, and educator. Essential skills include leadership, collaboration and mentoring. Students are expected to integrate knowledge of informatics theory and methods, advanced communication and situational assessment skills, workflow and process re-engineering techniques, evidence based practice, HIT-enabled care coordination, and principles of patient/staff education as components of advanced practice in the use of HIT to facilitate care of patients and families with complex needs across the continuum of health and health care. Preceptors will be suggested by students and vetted by JHUSON faculty. Student experiences in the practicum site will be pre-arranged and will be structured to give maximum exposure while not losing depth of experience. Student practicums will focus on involvement of the student in a HIT team, enabling observation and interaction with interdisciplinary team members. Practicum II immediately follows this course, in the same site, to enable the student to gain deeper experience with longer-term HIT initiatives. Prerequisites: ME.600.903 and 600.905 Corequisite: NR.300.601

NR.300.602 Human Factors in Health Information Technology

The health care system is becoming increasingly complex, posing a variety of challenges to health care providers and patients. In this course we will review research design, instruction, and training interventions that help providers deliver care more safely and effectively. Topics include provider and patient errors related to the design of health/healthcare information technologies (HIT), interventions to improve patient's comprehension of health information, issues related to providers and patient's use of HIT in health and health care settings, and the key importance of user-centered HIT design. We will begin with a brief introduction to problems and accidents in the health care system related to human factors, followed by an overview of basic concepts and methods from the fields of human factors, usability, and cognitive psychology. This overview provides a foundation for analysis of specific topics in health and health care and the human factors that impact HIT usability. Prerequisites: ME.600.903 and 600.905; NR.300.601 and 300.603 Corequisite: NR.300.604

NR.300.604 Applied Health Informatics Practicum II

This 8 week practicum experience builds upon Practicum I and will be continued in the same practicum site, enabling students to gain deeper experience with longer-term HIT initiatives. As with Practicum I, Practicum II will be individualized to provide the student with opportunities to develop the diverse ROLES and SKILLS of a health care informatician. Relevant role foci include: health IT expert, consultant, researcher, change agent, and educator. Essential skills include leadership, collaboration and mentoring. Students are expected to integrate knowledge of informatics theory and methods, advanced communication and situational assessment skills, workflow and process re-engineering techniques, evidence based practice, HIT-enabled care coordination, and principles of patient/staff education as components of advanced practice in the use of HIT to facilitate care of patients and families with complex needs across the continuum of health and health care. Student practicums will focus on the involvement of the student in a HIT team, enabling observation and interaction with interdisciplinary team members. Preceptors are pre-determined as arranged in Practicum I. Prerequisites: ME.600.903 and ME.600.905; NR.300.601 and 300.603 Corequisite: NR.300.602

School of Medicine Courses

ME.600.903 - Introduction to Informatics and Health Information Technology
The goal of the course is to provide a broad introduction to the field of informatics and health IT

ME.600.905 - Clinical Informatics
The goal of this course is to provide a general introduction for DHSI-program students and fellows to the clinical application of informatics techniques to clinical settings and workflows using a combination of readings, lectures from institutional leaders and personnel involved in clinical information technology at Johns Hopkins and guided exposure to clinical environments, IT applications and their interactions.

Sample Course
of Study

Sample Full-time Course of Study

Term I (2 credits)

ME.600.903 - Introduction to Informatics and Health Information Technology, September 4 - October 26

Term II (2 credits)

ME.600.905 - Clinical Informatics, October 29 - December 21

Term III (4 credits)

NR.300.602 - Human Factors in Health IT , January 22 - March 15
NR.300.603 - Applied Health Informatics Practicum I, January 22 - March 15

Term IV (4 credits)

NR.300.601 - Principles & Applications in Telehealth for Chronic Disease Management, March 25 - May 17
NR.300.604 - Applied Health Informatics Practicum II, March 25 - May 17

Tuition

$12,500 total

Total cost for the 9-month online Applied Health Informatics Program.

More
Information

More Information

Industry Outlook

Many national healthcare leaders have speculated a new workforce crisis is emerging. This crisis will impact the Presidential mandate to employ needed health information technologies (HIT) in healthcare delivery systems across the country. As the U.S. healthcare industry begins to convert antiquated paper record systems to modern information technology systems, it lacks a comprehensive plan to educate a comprehensive HIT workforce that will support this transformation. As a result, the ability to hire HIT professionals may become a serious limiting factor in the adoption and implementation of electronic health records (EHR) and other health information technologies.

Meeting the increasing demands will require responses from both the U.S. healthcare industry and institutions of higher education. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics – an expected 50,000 skilled HIT practitioners will be needed in the future to meet the market demands. Both the American Nurses Association and the American Association of Medical Colleges have responded with the creation of formal specialty certifications in Informatics.

HIT Program

The post-bachelor's program in Applied Health Informatics provides an overview of the field; facilitates understanding of current issues and developments in the discipline; relates user needs to information-technology possibilities; facilitates competent, efficient, and safe use of HIT; and enables students to evaluate the impact of HIT in the specific application environment.

The 12 semester credit hour (16 “term” credit hours) Applied Health Informatics program coursework is online and must be completed in nine months. There are no residency requirements, and the 16 week practicum experience will be completed in a physical location convenient to the student.

Program Candidates

Applicants to the Applied Health Informatics program are individuals from the healthcare or related fields who wish to update their skills and knowledge in applied health/healthcare informatics. Our goal is to capitalize on the collective wisdom of experienced clinicians and other health oriented persons, who through many years of exposure to hospitals, patients, clinics, and communities, possess a solid knowledge of workflow and processes.

Individuals who complete the program gain a significant degree of competency to perform clinical, and management functions with a higher degree of effectiveness within the increasingly digital organizational/system environment. The program whelp equip students to move into leadership positions into HIT-enabled environments wherever they go.

Questions?

Questions and inquiries may be referred to the Office of Admissions and Student Services at 410-955-7548 or jhuson@jhu.edu and to Dr. Patricia Abbott.

For media inquiries, contact Jon Eichberger at (410)614-4695, je@jhu.edu.

Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
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