Health informatics (HI) applies big data to health care challenges, utilizing data analytics to drive significant advances in medical delivery and outcomes. According to Health IT Analytics, “Big data analytics can help support preventive health, find gaps in chronic disease management, improve population health management and advance precision medicine.”
You can learn more about health informatics by clicking here to read the SHRS Intro to Health Informatics article.
Is health informatics a good career choice?
Informatics is a smart career choice for anyone driven to do transformative work that makes a difference in people’s lives. It’s also a good option for those who value job security. Demand for health informatics professionals is already high and will likely grow over time because of the sheer volume of data generated by patient care, research and health finance.
A degree specifically in health informatics can bolster your expertise and credentials. If you’re ready to advance or pivot your career, plentiful opportunities await you. While actual titles vary from company to company, the following roles are available to those looking for a career in HI.
Click here to read Shay’s story and learn how the Pitt Bachelor of Science in Health Informatics program launched her career!
Be a leader.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 28 percent growth in medical and health services managerial roles over the next decade. Increased use of health informatics to guide practice should boost demand for related leadership roles.
Health Informatics Analyst/Business Analyst
Health informatics analysts focus on outcomes. They explore possible health care outcomes by creating data-based models or simulations to answer research questions or improve treatment practices. Business analysts use clinical data to improve operations.
Director of Health Informatics
Directors of health informatics manage the implementation of electronic medical records systems in hospitals and other medical facilities. Their responsibilities include ensuring adequate staff training.
Clinical Informatics Specialist
Clinical informatics specialists make sure medical records are correctly digitized. They review systems, work to boost efficiency and teach staff members new protocols. They also help physicians, nurses and hospital administrators use IT systems to enter, review and retrieve data.
Dive into the data and analytics.
Analytics may be your best fit if you’re more interested in working with the data than managing a team. These are excellent options for health care practitioners, including but not limited to nurses, physical therapists and physician assistants, seeking a career transition.
Health Data Scientist
Health data scientists clean, organize and analyze health data. Some might design and conduct surveys that capture data. Once they have the data prepared, they determine the best tool for analyzing it.
Health Information Systems Programmer
Systems programmers code and customize software for health information systems like electronic health records (EHR), billing and scheduling platforms. They support system interfaces, data conversions and backend functionality. Work with clinical and administrative users to enhance performance and usability. Maintains systems in compliance with health care data standards and privacy laws.
Informatics Analyst
An informatics analyst uses data and technology to improve patient care and health care processes. They analyze data, implement systems and work with stakeholders to optimize workflows and decision-making. Essentially, they bridge the gap between clinicians and technology, ensuring data is used effectively to improve patient outcomes and operational efficiency.
Nursing Informatics Specialists
Nursing informatics specialists have dual training in health informatics and nursing, enabling them to convey nurses’ needs to programmers and data-management system developers. They also use their expertise to improve workflows for nurses and treatment for patients.
Meet Laxmi, a physical therapist who earned her Pitt Master of Science in Health Informatics (MSHI) to use data to better help patients.
Work in technology.
The utility of health informatics extends beyond health care facilities. Software companies, consulting firms, insurers, pharmaceutical companies, government agencies and NGOs all employ informaticists in essential roles. Let’s look at some opportunities that don’t involve direct employment in patient-care settings.
Health Informatics Consultant
Health informatics consultants play an advisory role, advising medical facilities on technological issues and proposing solutions. Duties may involve electronic medical records, IT protocols, training and education.
Health Care IT Project Manager
IT project managers in health care get the call when a facility needs a new IT system. They oversee the project from start to finish, from planning and resource allocation to full implementation.
Electronic Health Records Implementation Specialist
EHR implementation specialists are experts in health care software programs used with electronic medical records. Duties may include setting up a template for billing and coding, recommending software enhancements, training and evaluating a facility’s records.
Medical Software Engineer
Creates software used in medical devices, diagnostic tools or clinical environments. Ensures systems meet FDA regulations and safety standards. Focuses on reliability, performance and compliance in mission-critical applications. Often works with cross-functional teams in biomedical engineering and health care IT.
Privacy Officer/Compliance Auditor
These roles implement and maintain policies and procedures related to patient information, ensuring compliance with federal, provincial and territorial laws. They also work to identify risks that may affect the confidentiality of protected information.
Learn more from our MSHI alumna, Lin!
Many of these health informatics positions require a master’s degree, professional experience or a combination of both. Pitt offers both a bachelor’s and master’s degree (on-campus and online) in health informatics. Pitt’s programs offer courses that can train you in a variety of focus areas including but not limited to:
- Data Science
- Health Care Supervision and Management
- Health Services Analytics
- AI and Health
Where do I start?
Build your Skillset
There are several important technical skills that you’ll want to develop in an HI program to be successful as a health informatics specialist. These include:
- Programming: Health informatics specialists often use computer programming skills to automate statistical analysis functions, allowing them to extract insights from large amounts of data that would otherwise be impossible to interpret.
- Data analytics: Health informatics specialists use a combination of descriptive, predictive and prescriptive analytics to discover patterns in data, and transform these patterns into valuable insights.
- Health care IT: Health informatics specialists must be comfortable using health care IT systems such as electronic health records (EHR) and clinical health data systems. They should also know how to analyze data provided by technologies like telemedicine, wearable health devices, electronic prescription services, patient portals and consumer health care apps.
While technical skills are often highly specific to certain roles, soft skills are more widely applicable and support productivity, creativity and communication in the workplace. Some of the most important soft skills for health informatics specialists include:
- Analytical thinking and problem solving: Health informatics specialists must be able to extract insights from complex data sets and understand how to make informed decisions based on data trends and patterns.
- Communication: Research has shown that effective communication can positively impact an organization’s performance. As interdisciplinary professionals, health informatics specialists must utilize communication skills to make complex data concepts accessible to healthcare professionals with minimal tech experience.
- Ethics: As professionals who regularly work with sensitive patient data, health informatics specialists must always operate ethically, and remain aware of any risks to patient privacy.
- Organization: Organizational skills are critical for avoiding mistakes when managing large datasets for complex projects. This is particularly true in health care, as data management errors by health care organizations can impact patients and lead to costly compliance issues.
Ready to build these skills start changing the health care field and influence positive patient outcomes?
We encourage you to learn more about a Pitt degree in health informatics! Reach out to an enrollment specialist today!