HIT 421 Introduction to Health Informatics
Summary
Course Description
This course covers fundamental concepts related to the role of health informatics (HIT) in modern healthcare, including how data is generated, managed, and utilized. The course is meant to provide an introduction to a wide array of topics within health informatics, across a range of settings from hospitals to clinical research to community-based public health and beyond. We will look not only at the technical side, but also at the interaction of people, information, and systems within healthcare. Course topics will include: different kinds of health data, types of healthcare systems, various actors within healthcare (doctors, patients, payors etc.), role of data science and machine learning in healthcare, AI for health, digital health technology, public health informatics, bioinformatics, clinical research systems, ethics, and types of careers in health informatics. The goal of the course is for students to develop a broad understanding of how all these topics interconnect in the practice of modern health informatics, and to lay the foundation for students to take more advanced courses in HIT in the future.
Course Learning Goals
At the end of the course, students should be able to:
- understand the fundamental principles underlying each health informatics topic, and how they interconnect
- understand the history of HIT, and it evolved into its current role within healthcare
- understand the various kinds of healthcare data and healthcare systems that HIT must manage, across a range of different settings
- understand the various actors within the healthcare space (doctors, patients, payors, etc.) and how they influence HIT
- understand how newer technologies (data science, machine learning, AI) can integrate into modern health informatics
- understand the role of ethics and privacy issues in the practice of modern data science
- develop the proficiency to engage in more advanced HIT courses in the future
This syllabus is subject to change as necessary during the quarter. If a change occurs, it will be thoroughly addressed during class, posted under Announcements in D2L and sent via email.
Evaluations are a way for students to provide valuable feedback regarding their instructor and the course. Detailed feedback will enable the instructor to continuously tailor teaching methods and course
content to meet the learning goals of the course and the academic needs of the students. They are a requirement of the course and are key to continue to provide you with the highest quality of teaching. The
evaluations are anonymous; the instructor and administration do not track who entered what responses. A program is used to check if the student completed the evaluations, but the evaluation is completely
separate from the student’s identity. Since 100% participation is our goal, students are sent periodic reminders over three weeks. Students do not receive reminders once they complete the evaluation.
Students complete the evaluation online in CampusConnect.
This course will be subject to the university's academic integrity policy. More information can be found at http://academicintegrity.depaul.edu/ If you
have any questions be sure to consult with your professor.
All students are expected to abide by the University's Academic Integrity Policy which prohibits cheating and other misconduct in student coursework. Publicly sharing or posting online any prior or current materials from this course (including exam questions or answers), is considered to be providing unauthorized assistance prohibited by the policy. Both students who share/post and students who access or use such materials are considered to be cheating under the Policy and will be subject to sanctions for violations of Academic Integrity.
All students are required to manage their class schedules each term in accordance with the deadlines for enrolling and withdrawing as indicated in the University Academic Calendar. Information on enrollment, withdrawal, grading and incompletes can be found at http://www.cdm.depaul.edu/Current%20Students/Pages/PoliciesandProcedures.aspx.
Students who feel they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact the instructor privately to discuss their specific needs. All discussions will remain confidential.
To ensure that you receive the most appropriate accommodation based on your needs, contact the instructor as early as possible in the quarter (preferably within the first week of class), and make sure that
you have contacted the Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD) at:
Lewis Center 1420, 25 East Jackson Blvd.
Phone number: (312)362-8002
Fax: (312)362-6544
TTY: (773)325.7296