Dilhari DeAlmeida, is a professor of Health Information Management and director of the Bachelor of Science in Health Informatics (BSHI) program in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Pittsburgh. After completing a bachelor’s degree in cell and molecular biology at the University of Toronto, DeAlmeida moved to Pittsburgh to work at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and Pitt’s Center for Vaccine Research. She later discovered the Department of Health Information Management at Pitt, where she pursued a master’s degree and PhD before assuming the faculty role she fills today.
Read on to learn more about DeAlmeida’s experience as a student, her teaching style and how she sees the field of health informatics (HI) evolving.
From HI Student to HI Faculty
A few years after my undergraduate degree, I realized the potential that analyzing data and leveraging technology in health care can do to advance medicine. At that point in my life, I had a great depth of a scientific background, but not as much of the technical background. So, as I was working full time, I started to look around for options and realized there was a master’s degree in health information systems in the Pitt Department of Health Information Management.
I really enjoyed the program as a student because it gave me the intersection between health care and information technology, and it really helped me in my work as a researcher in cellular and molecular biology. I then pursued my PhD in the department as well, focusing on clinical documentation integrity.
After my doctorate degree, I was blessed that there was an opening in the department for a faculty position, which I started in 2012 and have been lucky to be here since then.
For the undergraduate program, I teach Foundations of Health Informatics and Information Management and I coteach Digital Health and the Electronic Health Record System as well as the Capstone Project course. For the Master of Science in Health Informatics graduate program, I coteach Health Information and the Health Care System; Foundations of Health Informatics; Healthcare Analytics, Machine Learning, and Data Visualization; Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence; and Introduction to Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Innovation and Classification.
Passion for Teaching
I love teaching and I love the students. The proudest moment every year happens during graduation. Seeing them walk across the stage and hearing what their next steps are really energizes me and makes me truly proud of them.
With the graduate program, it really is a two-way street. I’m learning from the students, too. We have all of these professionals who are active in their careers—doctors, nurses, physical therapists, etc.—and the experiences they bring to the class from their clinical backgrounds is really enriching for me too.
What Makes Pitt HI Stand Out
Our BSHI program is the first in the country to be accredited, and our Master of Science in Health Informatics program also recently received its accreditation. One of the many key distinctions between our Pitt HI programs versus other HI programs is that all of the courses we offer are developed from the ground up by our own faculty. They have spent extensive time developing a curriculum on the cutting edge of health care data management and bringing their experience as leaders in their fields to ensure students have access to the best education possible. We have full-time and part-time faculty, which also is a strength because we have experts in so many different areas when it comes to informatics that work with us.
Another effort that we make in all of our classes is to ensure the students not only gain the technology skills in health care, but also the business of health care and the high-level clinical settings of health care, so they can understand all of the different information systems needed from the time a patient comes in from admission all the way to discharge.
Future of the HI Field
What we all want to do is improve the quality of data, and that in turn will improve the quality of care we provide to the patients. As I tell my students, improving health care is a three-pronged approach: you have to try to improve the quality, reduce the cost and increase access. As an informatician, we try to work to get all three pillars taken care of.
HI is a field that is ever-changing and ever-evolving, and that’s what makes it exciting. We are constantly trying to figure out technologies to advance health care so that we can improve the quality of patient care we provide. Now with artificial intelligence, incorporating that into informatics is also another exciting opportunity.
Other Roles at Pitt
Alongside my faculty and program director role, I also serve as the vice chair for education for the HIM department. The goal of this role is to make sure that we continue to build, restructure and administer successful undergraduate and graduate programs to our students.
As part of that, during orientation I tell the students that if they have any questions or concerns, good or bad, to come let me know. I have an open-door policy. They can reach me at any time. I’m here to make sure that they have a successful journey with us.
Outside of teaching and my administrative roles, I do spend a lot of time in service. I’ve been involved in national professional associations for the last 20 years now. I am involved with the International Federation of Health Information Management Associations; the American Health Information Management Association, and I’m also elected to the Health Informatics Accreditation Council at the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education.
Fun Facts
I love to travel and explore new places and spend time with my husband and two sons when I can!
