The University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill
Health Informatics Study
Prepared by
Anne Parker
Anne.Parker@mindspring.com
(252) 249-1985
January 19, 2005
UNC Chapel Hill
Health Informatics Study
Scope of Work
A group of faculty from the Schools of Nursing, Public Health, Pharmacy, Information and Library
Science, and Medicine, who constitute a working group on health informatics, have considerable interest
in developing an interdisciplinary certificate program in health informatics. This consultant was hired by
the School of Information and Library Science with funding from the Health Affairs Interdisciplinary
Education Committee to conduct a planning study that
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Establishes a baseline of existing health informatics activities at UNC,
Inventories offerings at peer institutions' health informatics programs, and
Identifies gaps between UNC offerings and those of other institutions. .
The report is charged with recommending follow-on activities such as a market study and business plan
for an interdisciplinary approach to health informatics. Draft findings were reviewed with the faculty
working group on health informatics and suggestions were incorporated into the final report.
The recent report from the Institute of Medicine, Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public
Health Professionals for the 21st Century,1 highlights the need for public health education to expand
beyond its traditional core content areas into informatics, genomics, communication, cultural competence,
community-based participatory research, global health, policy and law, and public health ethics. The
report notes that
"Understanding and being able to apply information and computer science
technology to public health practice and learning (i.e., public health informatics) are
necessary competencies for public health professionals in this information age in
which we are vitally dependent upon data." 2
Health Informatics at Other Universities
Methodology
A few universities have established separate health or medical informatics centers that focus academic
work in health informatics. Most programs, however, are now fully embedded within a department, with a
few reaching out to other disciplines/departments for areas of specialization.
Institutions offering graduate health informatics programs of study were surveyed to determine the scope
of their offerings, the focus, the areas of specialization, and the degree to which these programs
incorporated an interdisciplinary element. The results are summarized in the table in Appendix B. The
information was gathered via web searches, and the results were validated by checking dates and crosschecking with other sites at each of the universities3. (See the discussion of Iowa below for an example
of cross-checking.) If the information was questionable, current registrar course listings were checked to
see if courses were actually offered. If the site passed initial screening, no attempt was made to verify
that course listings were still accurate. Only US programs were included in the search.
To locate institutions that offer health informatics programs, a number of strategies were used:
 Information from members of the Health Informatics Working Group
 Google and Clusty search engines
1
2
3
Gebbie, Kristine; Rosenstock, Linda; Hernandez, Lyla, Eds.; Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health
Professionals for the 21st Century; The National Academies Press; Washington, D.C.; 2004.
K. Gebbie, L. Rosenstock, and L. Hernandez, Eds., The National Academies Press, 2003, page 7. See
http://books.nap.edu/catalog/10542.html
If programs were initially located via a university's search engine, the next step validated that information about the program
could be located through the administrative hierarchy.
UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
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January 2005
Brad Hemminger's annual report on bioinformatics4 programs that also lists health informatics for
some schools
Institutions that had or have NLM training grants
Professional associations for Nursing, Public Health, Libraries, Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy,
Library Science
Informatics-specific association web sites, e.g., AMIA, searching for a university affiliation (e.g.
faculty serving as officers or authors) and collaborative agreements with universities (e.g,
conference host sites, continuing education)
Continuing and online education sites e.g. the Public Health Foundation's www.training.org,
MLANet, and others.
Informatics conference program speaker affiliation
US News and World Report graduate programs listings
Professional training sites
Links from located universities
US News list of SLIS schools
ALISE statistics5 related to specializations, cross-listings, and joint degree programs
The first pass used primarily the first four sources. Undergraduate programs were eliminated from the
list, as were any that appeared to be strictly IT systems development and management programs and an
initial profile was developed for the remainder. 6 Additional research using the next three sources and
additional research on institutional web sites then expanded the list and the data. A final culling reduced
the number of institutions to nineteen (see Appendix B), and these were then analyzed further.
Type of certification
At least 30 US institutions offer credit-bearing, post-baccalaureate degrees in health informatics or a
specialization in Health Informatics. Medical and Biomedical informatics programs were included in this
total when the program did not focused exclusively in the biological sciences. In addition to these 30, two
for-profit institutions, University of Phoenix and DeVry, offer post-baccalaureate certification programs in
Nursing Informatics, No online information was available about these programs online and they were not
investigated further.
Informatics Post
Baccalaureate Certificate
Eighteen informatics certificate programs are offered for credit. Most
Programs
are either concurrent with a master's program or can be applied to a full
master's degree. Programs ranged in length from 12 to 24 credit hours
Min
as indicated in the table below. Some programs have a varying
credit
number of credit hours, depending on the qualifications of the individual
hours
N
%
student. (The minimum is listed in the table.)
12
4
22%
Oregon offers an online 24 hour certificate in medical informatics, the
15-16
4
22%
University of Illinois at Chicago's 23 hour certificate is also available
18
2
11%
online. Both can be used as the beginning of a master's program as
20-21
3
17%
can Pittsburgh's on-campus certification program. Excelsior College
23
2
11%
has a post-baccalaureate certificate online that requires 17 hours, which
cannot be applied to a master's degree. Certificate programs at Duke
24
3
17%
(Nursing), Washington, and Iowa are designed to be used in
Total
18
100%
conjunction with other post graduate study.
4
5
6
http://ils.unc.edu/bmh/bioinfo/bioinformatics_programs_summary
http://ils.unc.edu/ALISE/2004/Curriculum/Table%20III-9.htm
Thanks to Anna Kinman in Linda Carl's office for her good help with this activity.
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
January 2005
Most of these programs offer a professional master's degree, with an emphasis on the application of
informatics. Four institutions, Oregon Health and Science University, the University of Pittsburgh,
Master's Degree Description
MS in informatics for MDs
MSN with informatics specialization
MS or professional master's degree in health or biomedical
informatics
MS or professional master's degree in public health
informatics
Interdisciplinary master's programs
MSLS or MSIS with health or medical informatics
specialization (not including health sciences librarianship).
N
1
11
14
5
10
2
Vanderbilt University and the University of Washington also have research programs in informatics.
Pittsburgh and Vanderbilt have a strong computational focus. Johns Hopkins offers a two-year fellowship
in informatics.
Of the six top schools from US News and World Report's 1999 rankings of library schools' Health
Sciences Librarianship programs7 only three list Health Sciences Librarianship or any health/medical area
as a specialization area for the MS degree as indicated in the table below. Pittsburgh has a strong
interdisciplinary presence in biomedical informatics, and UNT has a wide range of offerings in other
disciplines.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Institution
University of Pittsburgh
University of North Texas
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
University of South Carolina-Columbia
University of Missouri-Columbia
University of Maryland-College Park
Health Specialization?
Yes
Yes
None mentioned
None mentioned
None mentioned
Yes
The survey found very few non-credit, continuing education opportunities for health informatics offered by
universities. Oregon Health and Science University offers a 30 contact hour, online, cohort-based
program, Introduction to Biomedical Informatics for Health Sciences Librarians. (See Appendix B.)
Stanford offers a medical informatics short course targeted to MDs that is online and self paced for 22.5
contact hours of CME credit. UNC's CDC-funded Center for Public Health Preparedness has one
recorded webcast with slides that addresses the topic 8. Drexel had advertised a certification in Health
Sciences Librarianship last year, but that option no longer appears on Drexel's web site.
Other, non-academic providers had few, if any, online or self-study offerings in informatics. The AMA
online CE website had no courses on this topic. HIMSS, (Healthcare Information and Management
Systems Society) had one IT management short course in spite of listing six informatics-related subjects
among its 19 hot topics.9 The Public Health Foundation's training center, www.train.org, lists 6
informatics courses (search by topic) including the UNC course. These include a variety of topics ranging
from FDA part 11, to the use of the web for public health services delivery. (See Appendix C.)
7
8
9
1999 Rankings of Health Sciences Librarianship, http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/lib/premium/libsp2.php
See http://www.sph.unc.edu/nccphp/
HIMSS Hot topics list: http://www.himss.org/asp/about_issues.asp
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
January 2005
Continuing education opportunities for health informatics appear to be delivered primarily through
conferences, local workshops, and institutes. 10 For an association-approved conference, attendance at
conference sessions may qualify for continuing education contact hours and workshops held in
conjunction with a conference usually qualify. There are numerous national medical informatics
associations, some of which are based in a profession or operating as a special interest group of the
professional association. Appendix D contains a list of national associations providing continuing
education, and Appendix E contains a list of informatics credentialing and CE certification agencies. If
UNC elects to develop a certification program, it may make such a program more attractive by close
association with one or more credentials.
Target competencies
With respect to information and
resources, these informatics programs
tended to address competencies for five
different roles, with many programs
addressing multiple roles as indicated in
the table.
Role
Manager
User
Description
Planning, implementation, operation of IT
systems and resources either as a
primary or secondary responsibility
Using information resources and tools
effectively
Developing and delivering information
resources for others
Developing and delivering health related
systems
Investigating effectiveness of informatics
strategies
Connecting users of information with the
appropriate information and technologies
N
30
12
Provider
Programs in professional schools tend to
focus on management and sometimes on
Developer
user competencies. User competencies
are listed for a school only when multiple
Researcher
courses outside of a foundation
informatics course address advanced
Broker
topics. For example, some schools offer
GIS and public health surveillance
courses or use of large health databases in addition to a basic overview of information resources and
searching. These schools are listed with a "user" role.
6
6
8
4
Some public health programs also included courses in information delivery (e.g. for community health
information) as well as use of information and tools. Programs in medical schools tended to be more
computer science, research, and tool development focus (e.g. decision support), while allied health and
public health-based programs tended to have more of a management and user focus. Older programs
and those housed in information science schools place emphasis on systems design, management, and
development.
Domain
In addition to specific disciplines, programs tended to focus their programs in one or more four broad
domains that are noted in the table:
 Foundation
Programs that introduce basic concepts and/or technologies upon which are based the full range
of information and systems in health informatics,
 Clinical
These programs focus the study of technologies and information that concern individual patients.
Clinical systems include such areas as imaging technologies, diagnostic support, and patient
records.
 Public Health
These programs include the study of technologies and information that deal with populations.
GIS, surveillance, large databases, and consumer information are among the topics addressed in
this domain.
 Biological systems
These programs include the study of bioinformatics topics. Programs which are primarily related
to bioinformatics were not included in the summary.
10
See for example, "Continuing Education in Nursing Informatics," CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing, September/October
2003,
pp. 227-286.
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
Focus Areas
Certification
Foundation
Clinical
9
9
2
23
8
3
20
34
MS/ MA
Certificate
Non-credit
cont. edu.
Total
Public
Health
10
6
16
January 2005
Most programs include one or two introductory, or
foundation courses. "Foundation" is listed as an area
of focus in this table and in Appendix A when the
particular program allows students to complete the
degree or certificate requirements with multiple
introductory-level courses on aspects of informatics.
Programs that are interdisciplinary often include
elements of all four domains, though the breadth may
be somewhat tempered by the administrative location
of the offering unit.
Interdisciplinary Programs
Seven schools in the table have interdisciplinary informatics programs. Some institutions (e.g. Iowa)
have extensive cross-listings for the same limited number of foundation courses with electives in a variety
of units, but that seems to be the exception. IUPUI and Pittsburgh are more typical, with core courses
housed in a school (e.g. Center for Biomedical Informatics or SLIS), and electives available in a variety of
other schools. Schools were not flagged as an interdisciplinary offering if the program description offered
a generic option of one or two electives from another department.
Departments most frequently participating in interdisciplinary health informatics offerings were nursing,
public health, medicine, information and library science.
Iowa presents an interesting case that may bear further investigation. A university-wide interdisciplinary
informatics certificate, master's, and PhD program were proposed and apparently available in 2002, when
the program's website11 was last updated. There is now no listing for an interdisciplinary program in
Health Informatics on the University's main pages and the telephone number listed answers as
the"Geriatric Program." The only remaining artifacts of this broad attempt at collaboration seem to be the
extensive cross-listings for Health Informatics I and II, an interdisciplinary program housed in the School
of Nursing, and references to the Health Informatics Steering Committee, which sponsored a conference
on informatics in October 2004.
Some interdisciplinary programs rely or relied on federal funding (e.g. NIH or NLM) for both research and
training, while public health programs rely on CDC and homeland security-related funding. Not all
program web sites include news about grant funded activities, but for those that do, the informatics "hot
topics" for funding seem to be related to homeland security – i.e., public health surveillance, health
department preparedness, and systems security.
Online Offerings
Ten of the nineteen schools listed have online programs leading to a degree, certification, or
specialization in health or medical informatics. Four require some campus time, usually a few days each
year. Oregon requires no on-campus time for certification, but requires six on-campus credits for the
professional master's program. All online programs except one are offered in an instructor-led, scheduled
group mode. The exception is a self-paced short course offered by Stanford for CME credit. Some used
a fixed schedule / cohort group model while others allowed more student flexibility.
Health Informatics Courses and Programs at UNC Chapel Hill
Methodology
To identify UNC courses related to informatics, the following sources of information were used:
 Graduate catalog – searching for the term "informatics" as well as scanning course titles in
Health Affairs and SILS entries
11
www2.uiowa.edu/hinfo
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
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January 2005
Web search of the UNC site for "informatics"
Search the UNC Registrar's course offerings for 2003-2004 for "Informatics" and scan Health
Affairs schools and SILS course titles for informatics offerings not titled with that term
Scan of course titles listed on school and department web pages
Information from members of the Health Informatics Working Group
Courses listed as requirements or electives for health degrees with an Informatics or Information
Technology Specialty
SILS courses that serve the Bioinformatics certification as electives or requirements
This list of courses was reviewed by faculty in the working group and inactive and redundant listings were
removed, new courses were added and descriptions were updated and analyzed. A number of SILS
courses such as Database II, Natural Language Processing, could easily serve as electives for health
informatics programs, but are not included in this table because they did not meet the selection criteria.
The names of the final 26 health informatics-related courses are listed in Appendix B.
Program Specializations
Two Health Affairs schools offer a specialization in informatics within an MS program, Nursing and Public
Health. Nursing offers the Master of Science degree in Health Care Systems and the School of Public
Health's residential Master of Health Administration degree, offered by the department of Health Policy
and Administration (HPAA) offers a concentration in Information Systems. Each of these programs
includes informatics electives. The Nursing degree requires 6 credits from the School of Information and
Library Science (SILS) and the HPAA degree requires 6 hours from 11 information systems courses, 6 of
which are offered by SILS. Nursing and Public Health also offer dual degree programs with SILS. No
other School of Public Health degree program offers a concentration in Information Systems.
Dentistry does not appear to offer any informatics courses, Medicine has one, one-credit required course,
and Pharmacy cross-lists two health informatics courses with Public Health. The Pharmacy faculty
member who co-taught both courses has since left UNC and the fate of those courses is uncertain.
As noted above, SILS is ranked by US News and World Report as one of the top six schools for health
sciences librarianship and offers three regularly-offered courses in health science topics, but does not
define the area as a specialization.
From the perspective of program offerings, only Nursing appears to give health informatics a very high
priority at this time. SILS has the coursework, but no defined concentration or certificate. (There is a
certificate in Bioinformatics. See Appendix H.) One of the problems with offering concentrations is that
most professional master's programs are heavily concentrated in courses in the professional domain and
leave room for very few electives.
Course Characteristics
UNC's health informatics course offerings (Appendix B) were analyzed for interdisciplinary nature, as
indicated by explicit listing as an elective or cross-listing in another program. Similar to the university
programs described above, they were also categorized according to the information role being targeted
and the general domain. In addition, a designation of level and breadth was assigned.
Interdisciplinary courses
In the experience of many members of the faculty working group on health informatics, interdisciplinary
courses have generated very positive feedback from students. A second benefit of interdisciplinary
courses is sharing course development, expertise, and teaching loads. A third benefit, particularly if
faculty collaboration is involved, is that it can lead to interdisciplinary research, which is highly valued at
UNC.
Of the 27 courses listed in Appendix B, 16 are clearly interdisciplinary and another five are possible
candidates. Four are probably not suitable and two are unknown based on current information. Even the
four that are discipline-specific to a great degree, there may be useful elements that would be worth
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
January 2005
sharing indirectly. As a starting point for defining those common threads, Appendix C contains a table of
selected topics that are shared by at least two courses.
Target competencies (Role)
Given that none of the departments presently involved has a strong computational bent, it is not
surprising that only three courses address developer competencies, and then in combination with another
role. Information broker competencies were addressed by 5 courses, with information provider having 9
courses and information user and manager at 10 each. Since both the Nursing and HPAA degrees are
management degrees, the results are not surprising.
Domain
The preponderance of SILS courses in the list, and the survey nature of other courses yields 16 courses
categorized as "foundation." Seven focus on clinical systems or data and six on public health and one is
unknown. (Three are both clinical and public health.)
Level
With the exception of a two SILS courses, all courses are either overview / survey courses or targeted to
introducing a limited set of new skills and concepts. Eight are overview courses and 11 introduce some
set of basic skills. While some course descriptions mention theory or concepts, the overall focus is very
applied. Again, except for SILS, there was no current evidence of doctoral study or research activity in
health informatics aside from a few vestiges of an earlier NIH training grant. Many of the faculty teaching
informatics courses outside of SILS and Nursing are not research faculty.
UNC Chapel Hill's Strengths and Weaknesses
In comparing UNC's health informatics offerings with other institutions, UNC has a good selection of
topics, but little depth in any one area. While there is a good deal of diversity, there are also a number of
courses that appear to teach the same basic set of information searching and qualifying skills. The SILS
foundation core is quite strong, and does include more advanced coursework in health-related topics.
There are a few areas that could be added: project management (covered in only one or two sessions in
courses that do touch on it), information security (again typically only one or two course sessions), and
information policy.
The introductory nature of most of these offerings might make collaboration on interdisciplinary courses
less likely to serve as a springboard to interdisciplinary research. In the same vein, the listing of another
department's courses, typically doesn't involve much collaboration. Cross-listing courses and team
teaching form stronger ties.
UNC faces a number of challenges in developing an interdisciplinary certification in health informatics,
particularly in attracting an off-campus audience, but it also has a significant number of strengths.
+
Strengths
Interdisciplinary education is an academic
priority
Committed, enthusiastic working group
+
IOM report on Public Health
+
Enrollment is trending upward
+
Students are interested
+
Have experience with dual degrees (~1 MPH/
MSIS and 2 MSN/ MSIS each year)
+
Concentrations attract students (MSN in
Health Care Systems has ~35 students/ year)
+
-
-
Weaknesses
Credit and grading systems vary among
schools
Not a research funding priority
Outside of SILS, coursework is introductory
level
Administrative barriers to collaboration
Lack of faculty rewards for instructional
innovation
Other than SILS, there are a limited number
of tenured faculty teaching informatics
courses
Only a few online courses to attract non-UNC
students; significant resistance to online
delivery
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
+
+
+
Strengths
Once established, the ongoing cost of a
certification program is near zero
Strong CE enrollments in SPH and Nursing
Good UNC exemplars (see below)
January 2005
-
Weaknesses
Wide variety of possible foci may make a
certificate difficult to define
- Expectation of free CE (esp. Public Health)
- No dean currently champions the idea
Trends and Recommendations
Methodology
Trend information was gathered from the following sources:
 Agency reports (e.g. Institute of Medicine)
 Interviews with a few members of each constituency
 Web review of relevant associations (Appendix E and F) for white papers, courses, "hot
topics"
 Web search of traditional sources of funding for health professional development (e.g. NIH,
NLM, CDC) for interest in health informatics funding and position statements
 Web search of training sites for courses
 Search of the University of Toronto professional training center for library continuing
education. Toronto has historically been responsible for 67% of the non-credit, continuing
education courses for Library Science12
 ALISE 2004 reports of curriculum changes in schools of Information and Library Science
 Review of initial findings with faculty working group on informatics
These reviews were synthesized into a few large trends described here.
Since the SILS 1997 Health Sciences Librarian market research study 13 was conducted, the dot com
bubble burst and the aftermath of 9/11 has refocused many national priorities toward security and
bioterrorism.
Funding for bioinformatics and evidence-based medicine seem to be strong.14 In the wake of the Vioxx
problems, consumer health information, and technologies such as data mining may see an increase in
interest and funding. The initiative to promote the widespread adoption of an Electronic Health Record,
cites consumer health information access and the use of IT for error avoidance.15 Syndromic surveillance
has already begun to have an impact on funding as part of the bioterrorism threat response. Large-scale
planning reports such as the Institute of Medicine's report, Who Will Keep the Public Healthy?14 continue
to give the general area of health informatics a high priority, but funding will still likely be tied to aspects of
health sciences that align most strongly with these priorities.
The acquisition of informatics skills by the various health professions continues to be a priority for the
disciplines of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing and that trend is likely to continue. Dentistry and
Pharmacy exhibit fewer signs of interest. In the public health sector, informatics competencies have been
defined for different types of public health employees, and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has
been active providing training opportunities to upgrade skills over all competencies. The training
infrastructure is largely in place, but there are few courses in informatics. Nationally, Schools of
Information and Library Science are increasing the number of health related courses, especially in
consumer health information.12
12
13
14
15
ALISE 2003 report, Continuing Professional Education: http://ils.unc.ALISE/2003/CE01.htm
Moran, Barbara, Preparing Tomorrow's Health Sciences Librarians: Feasibility and Marketing Studies, NLM planning grant 1
T15 LMO7113-01, September 1997.
Gebbie, Kristine; Rosenstock, Linda; Hernandez, Lyla, Eds.; Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health
Professionals for the 21st Century; The National Academies Press; Washington, D.C.; 2004, p. 24.
Office of the Coordinator of Health Information Technology, http://www.hhs.gov/healthit/executivesummary.html
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
January 2005
Delivery of credit and CE courses in an online format or in a hybrid form (occasional campus visits)
continues to increase. For master's programs targeted to working professionals, it is by far the most
convenient mode.
UNC Models
In developing an interdisciplinary certificate program, UNC does have a variety of experiences from
which it can draw. These include:
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The Biomedical informatics certification program offers an interdisciplinary model that has
facilitated research as well as instruction. Appendix F describes the certificate program
through SILS.
Interdisciplinary certificates in a variety of topics (e.g. aging) already exist on campus. See
http://www.unc.edu/gradrecord/front/certificate.html for examples.
Dual degree programs between SPH and SILS and Nursing and SILS are in place.
Online courses such as Consumer Health Information, Evidence-based Medicine, and Health
Care Informatics have high student satisfaction rates.
SILS' Evidence-Based Medicine course provides an example of mixing CE and credit
students.
Team teaching across departments has worked well for Pre-clinical Informatics and other,
non-informatics courses.
Recommendations
Proceeding with an interdisciplinary health informatics certificate seems a worthwhile objective and can
be accomplished in stages as indicated below. UNC has a good foundation upon which to build and the
topic is gaining visibility. The recommendations below will move the project forward and will hopefully
also reduce the cost to participating faculty members.
Recommendation: Establish a home for the working group.
The working group on health informatics needs to be part of a larger, sanctioned structure to proceed.
The group has discussed several options the most likely of which is to be part of Health Affairs
Interdisciplinary Education Committee.
Recommendation: Develop and conduct an internal marketing campaign.
The purposes of the internal marketing campaign are as follows:
 Gain support and neutralize resistance among faculty and administrators for health informatics.
 Identify a health affairs dean who will be a program champion.
 Gain support of the SILS dean.
 Solicit student input about priorities for the certificate.
 Share information about informatics courses and topics with faculty and students across
departments (e.g. for content sharing, for additional electives).
The marketing campaign can consist of activities such the following:
 Initiate a speaker series that highlights both instructional and research connections and
strengthens opportunities for interdisciplinary research.
 Publish and distribute information about the array of courses that are currently available at UNC
along with enrollment instructions.
 Review published informatics competencies and tie to existing courses.
 Based on feedback from these activities, refine the scope, target audience, and delivery
strategies for a certificate program.
Recommendation: Strengthen the current offerings.


Serve the widest audience possible with hybrid or online delivery.
Review intro/skills courses to see if it's worth cross-listing courses to increase access and
strengthen interdisciplinary ties.
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UNC Chapel Hill Health Informatics Study
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January 2005
Identify gaps in the offerings and identify possible instructors.
Update electives for SPH and Nursing.
Share course modules. Some courses are highly modular and make extensive use of case
studies (e.g. Pre-clinical Informatics). These can be shared across disciplines. Common
topics for informatics courses are itemized in Appendix C.
Recommendation: Develop an initial concentration program within SILS.



Define a health sciences area of concentration.
Highlight health connections; list SPH and/or Nursing courses as electives where appropriate.
Delay any marketing plan for certification until internal marketing has resulted in strong
support from at least one dean in Health Affairs.
Conclusion
The working group's goal of an interdisciplinary informatics certificate is feasible, but unlikely to attract
much support or additional funding at this time. The recommendations listed above will help develop the
needed base of support for an interdisciplinary certificate and continue the progress that has been made
thus far. The recommendations can be acted upon concurrently or be addressed over a longer period of
time as resources are available.
10
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
University
of Arizona
Cost16
Credit
$3,854/yr
$12,624
Credit
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
Appl/
Resrch
MS Nursing Health Care
Systems or Nursing
Informatics
Applied
Credit
Post Master's Certif in
systems or informatics
Informatics Courses
Length17(
credit)
Data management, statistics, systems
eval, systems mgt theory, internship,
elective
36
Applied
Data management, statistics, systems
eval, systems mgt theory, internship,
elective
Cert: 15
U of AL
Birmingham
$200/ 500
per credit
hr
Credit
MS Health Informatics,
optional dual degree w/
Health Administration
Applied
Systems design, communication, data
bases, clin and admin sys, data mining
projc mgt strat planning, security
60
University
of California
- Davis
$1495/
3,441 per
quarter
Credit
MS Medical Informatics
Applied
Intro, Patient records, medical decision
support, web-based enterprise systems,
clinical data acquisition
15 req. +
others as
needed
Target Audience
Nurses wanting to get
into advanced practice
roles
Those with advanced
degrees in health
sciences
Delivery
On campus
Focus
Roles: manager
Areas:
foundation,
clinical
On campus
Roles: manager,
developer
On campus
Roles: research,
developer
Areas: clinical
University
of Colorado
$302/
$936/
Credit
hour
Credit
Master of Science with a
Nursing Specialization in
Health Care Informatics
Applied
Certificate in Health Care
Informatics
Columbia
University
$864/
credit hour
Credit
Somewhat
interdisciplinary
University
of
Connecticut
t
16
17
MS Biomedical informatics
specialty in clinical
information or population
informatics
Applied
MS or PhD research degree
Research
Evidence-Based practice, Human
Technology Interface, Health Systems
Policy and Social Justice, Management
Information for Decision Support,
Information Systems Life Cycle,
Advanced Practicum: Healthcare
Informatics, Health Communications,
Knowledge Systems, TeleHealth
Applications, Database Management
Systems
34
Biomedical concepts, computer apps in
health and biomedicine, computing
concepts, mathematical concepts;
electives: Dss, eval user interaction,
many others. Optional electives in
nursing, dentistry, public health. (Only
Dentistry cross-references)
30 MS
Nurses wanting to get
into advanced practice
roles
All online – no
need to come to
campus
Roles: manager
Professionals with
advanced degrees,
scientific background
On campus
Roles: research,
manager
Areas:
foundation
Cert: 16
60 PhD
Areas: clinical
Academic/ research
interests
$3,000 / 1
week
session
Noncredit
Intensive course in
bioinformatics (New
offering)
Applied
Overview, technology, pological
applications, clinical applications,
finance, organizational behavior
40+
contact
hours
Sr. management
On campus
Roles: manager
Areas:
foundation
$325/
course
$1,425 /
certificate
Noncredit
Certificate in Healthcare
Information Technology
(baccalaureate level)
Applied
IT and Healthcare IT infrastructure,
major application systems and solutions,
systems development and selection, estrategy, project management
5 5-week
courses
Mid-level IT staff,
offered in conjunction w/
HIMSS, since 2002
online
Roles: manager
Areas: clinical
and foundation
First figure listed is in-state costs, second is out-of state.
Length is given in credit hours except where noted.
11
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Duke
University
Cost16
Credit
$646/
credit hour
Credit
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
Nursing
MSN degree in Nursing
Informatics;
Post-Master’s Certificate in
Nursing Informatics
Appl/
Resrch
Applied
Informatics Courses
Length17(
credit)
Target Audience
Emory
University
$445/
credit hr
~$1,717 /
credit hr
Credit
Credit
Nursing Informatics
Certificate
MSPH in Public Health
Informatics
Applied
Applied
Research
Excelsior
College
$350 / hr
credit
Health Care Informatics
Certificate
Applied
Online – core
courses online,
others may
require 3-5
consecutive
campus days
each semester
Roles: manager
Nursing degree with
interest in informatics
certification
On campus
Roles: manager
48 plus
200 hrs of
practicum
Those with strong
quantitative skills.
(Biostatistics focus)
On campus
17
Any health care
professional with a
bachelor’s degree that’s
interested in improving
the delivery of health
care through info
technology
Online – no on
campus
requirement
Roles: manager
On campus
(have other DL
programs)
Roles: manager
MSN 40
Intro, Emerging technology, Healthcare
IS, prepare to take Nursing Informatics
credentialing exam
12
Principles, DBMS, artificial intelligence,
GIS, surveillance; electives for public
health or clinical specialties
BS degree required; credit toward MSN
in clinical practice
Cert. 21
Interdisciplinary
George
Washington
University
Harvard/
MIT (Div of
Health
Sciences
and Technology)
$810 per
credit hr
MPH in Health Information
Systems
Credit
Medical Informatics
Master’s program (degree
granted by MIT)
Appl
Rsrch
Focus
Nursing informatics:
fulltime working BSN or
MSN with several years
experience. Certificate
is post MSN
MSN: management and statistics
courses, public health plus
Overview of Healthcare Info Systems,
Mgt of Info Sys, Proj Mgt, infrastructure
Medicine – 3rd year
opportunity for joint degree
w/ UNC – SILS for
MD/MSLS or MD/MSIS
Eastern
University
Delivery
Core is PH courses plus 5 basic systems
courses (DB, SA); Options include GIS in
trend analysis, epi databases; Certif
credits transfer to MS.
MS 36
Cert. 18
A pre-graduate prep course in computer
science, 66 units of graduate subjects,
master’s thesis of 24 units
2 years
full time
Designed for individuals
who already have MD
degree or who are
currently enrolled in MD
program in the HST
Division
Areas: public
health, some
clinical
Areas:
foundation
Roles: research
Areas: public
health or clinical
Areas;
foundation (IS)
Areas: public
health
Roles: systems
developer,
research
Areas: vary –
clinical mgt to AI
12
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Cost16
Credit
University
of Illinois at
Chicago
$450/
credit hour
Credit
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
Master’s of Public Health
Informatics (MPHI)
Appl/
Resrch
Applied
Certificate Program – Public
Health Informatics (CP)
Interdisciplinary
Population-based health care
MPHI: 6 public health core courses, 8
informatics courses, a practicum and
capstone experience
Length17(
credit)
Target Audience
MPHI: 48
MPHI: Health Agency
Personnel, Managed
Care Organization staff,
International Health
Agency Personnel,
Federal Health Officers
Cert: 23
CP: Health Care Data, Health
Information and Decision Support
Systems, WEB-Based Public Health
Informatics, Applications of Geographic
Information Systems in Public Health,
and an integrative paper
Health Informatics MS and
Certificate
IUPUI
Informatics Courses
$236/ 637
per credit
hr
credit
Interdisciplinary
MS Health Informatics
School of Informatics
Applied
Appl
Undergrad minor and
certificate options
Delivery
All online – no
on campus
requirements
Focus
Roles: manager,
user
Areas: public
health
CP: Professionals w/
public health deg or exp
w/ informatics wishing to
upgrade their skills;
students in schools of
public health outside the
US wanting public
health informatics w/
agreement of their
schools.
Patient-based health care; patient
management, clinical records, business
processes, decision support. Certificate
requires prior MS
23
Wide range of specializations. Core
includes intro, info mgt, statistics.
Electives in clinical info, HCI, project
mgt. and variety of electives from CS,
SLIS, and SPH
36
Professionals wishing to
upgrade skills
Certificate
online; many
master's courses
Roles: manager
On campus
Roles: manager,
developer, user
Areas: clinical
Focus: clinical,
public,
foundation
Affiliation with
Regenstrief
Institute,
research and
dev in med
records systems,
information stds.
U of Iowa
Interdisciplinary
$944/
credit
Credit
Interdisciplinary PhD –
Health Informatics
Certificate
Appl
Use of data, eval of information, IT ,
extensive options for related work;
Appears to be available for nursing only;
proposed for others. HI I (tools and
technology) is cross-listed in Nursing,
Eng, Radiology, SLIS, medicine; HI II is
cross-listed for Eng., Nurs, and Rad.
PhD 76
Cert. 20
Certificate in conjunction
with other master's,
doctoral pgm; or as
post-graduate study
Roles: user
Focus: clinical
13
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Johns
Hopkins
Cost16
Credit
No cost fellowship
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
Fellowship in Health
Informatics offered through
division of Health Science
Informatics
Appl/
Resrch
Rsrch
Informatics Courses
Didactics – include core curriculum in
health science informatics, electives, two
weekly seminars
Length17(
credit)
Target Audience
2 years
full time
Delivery
On campus
Practical experience – six
practica/rotations in operational
information technology environments
throughout the university and with
outside partners
Focus
Roles: broker,
provider,
researcher
Areas: vary
Research experience
Loyola
University
Chicago
University
of Maryland
Baltimore
$529 /
credit hour
$380 /
$681
credit hour
Credit
MS Nursing Health Systems
Management, subspecialty
in Healthcare Informatics or
Outcomes Performance
Management.
Credit
Certificate
Credit
MS with a Nursing
Informatics Major
Applied
Applied
Post-Master's Certificate
Program in Nursing
Informatics
University
of
Minnesota
$681/
1,272
Credit
Master's of Health
Informatics; MS (Medical
School, Department of
Laboratory Medicine and
Pathology)
University
of MissouriColumbia
656 / 793
per hr
Credit
Executive MS online; MS on
campus
Applied
Research
Interdisciplinary
University
of Nebraska
$205 / 575
Credit
Health systems Nursing
Specialist (MS, Nursing
Informatics specialization
Applied
IS for Health Care Mgt, Practicum
Informatics: Using tech to educate
patients and support care; knowledge
rep. and vocabularies; decision support.
Opt: DB, Strategic IS. Outcomes Mgt:
Performance mgt theory, outcomes
performance methods,
38
Nurses interested in
leadership positions;
certification in Nursing
Informatics or
Healthcare Quality
On campus
Roles: manager,
provider, user
Healthcare Informatics
Cert. 12
Nurses interested in
certification in Nursing
Informatics
Systems analysis, project mgt, nursing
informatics concepts, Database,
practicum, electives
39-40
Practicing professionals
Certificate can be achieved after 15-24
credits of Graduate level study.
Advisors work independently and directly
with students to craft a program based
on individual needs and learning
objectives.
Cert. 1524
Quantitative and decision support focus;
intro, operations research, IT in health
care, trends, seminars, 6 hours of
electives outside of health informatics
program. Project for MS.
MHI 32
MS 42
MHI Professionals with
quantitative skills; MS
Those with research
interests
On campus
Roles:
researcher,
analyst
Areas: clinical
9 courses and an individualized research
project: Introduction to Health
Informatics, Administration of Health
Care Organizations, System
Architecture, Economics of Health Care,
Research Methods, Decision Support,
Controlled Terminology, Knowledge
Management, Security, Data
Repositories
33
Individuals with three
years of clinical,
technical or
administrative
experience in health
care or the health
sciences.
Online except
requires 8 on
campus
weekend
sessions (4 per
year)
Roles: manager
Analysis, design and implementation,
data management, systems analysis
44
Nursing professionals
On campus
Roles: user,
some manager
Areas: clinical
Some courses
available online
Roles: manager
(others optional)
Areas:
foundation
Sub-specialties:
security,
development,
others
Areas: clinical;
foundation (IS)
14
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Cost16
Credit
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
Appl/
Resrch
Informatics Courses
Nursing Informatics
Certification
NYU
$1,213
Credit
MA Nursing Informatics
U of N
Texas
Oregon
Health &
Science
University
Credit
Assessment and analysis of clinical and
nursing information systems, data bases,
decision support, implementation, mgt,
evaluation of IS
MS 36
Nursing: Health care informatics, 2
courses in Systems Analysis, internet
applications, systems effectiveness,
database, or interface design.
40 plus
residency
Public Health: at least 2 courses in intro
Hlth info sys, database, systems
analysis, info retrieval, interface design,
internet apps, or large health care
databases. (6 courses offered by School
of Info and Lib Sci; joint degree also
offered.)
52
MS Information Science –
health informatics program
Info mgt, Med Informatics, clin care info,
community health info, imaging; 6 hrs in
pub health optional, field experience
MS 36
CAS
Same w/ up to 12 hrs in other informatics
programs
Cert. 24
Certificate: 8 three-credit courses – Intro
to Medical Informatics, Clinical Systems,
Information retrieval and Digital libraries,
Organizational Behavior and
Management and 4 elective courses.
Can serve as entry to master's program
Cert.: 24
Nursing: MS Healthcare
Systems
Applied
Applied
Public Health: MPH
concentration in Information
Systems
$401/ 659
(decr w/
hrs taken)
$433/ 499
credit hr
Credit
Credit
Distance Learning Graduate
Certificate in Medical
Informatics (CMI)
Appl
Resrch
Professional Master of
Biomedical Informatics
(PMBI)
Interdisciplinary
Target Audience
Delivery
Cert. 1215
Post-master's Certification
University
of North
Carolina
Chapel Hill
Length17(
credit)
Areas:
foundation
Professional nurses
MS: same as professional master's but
requires master’s thesis
Ph.D. in Biomedical
Informatics (PHD)
PHD: Demonstration of Biomedical
Informatics knowledge
On campus
Cert. 21
Roles: manager
Areas: clinical
Professional nurses
On campus
Roles: manager
Areas:
foundation,
Those interested in
healthcare management
On campus
Roles: manager,
Areas:
foundation,
public health
PMBI or
MS: 52
PHD: 48
Libs, clinical settings,
pub health
Online, some on
campus mtgs
Roles: manager,
provider, broker
Areas: clinical,
public health
option
health prof seeking
addn'l training in info
and mgt technology;
non-health care prof
seeking training in
health information and
technology.
PMBI: no master’s thesis required
Master of Science Program
in Biomedical
Informatics(MS)
Focus
Certificate program is
co-sponsored with
HIMSS
CMI: Online
PMBI: offered on
campus or
online with sixcredit oncampus
requirement
Roles: manager,
user, provider,
developer
Areas: primarily
clinical
MS: on campus
PHD: on campus
$25/hr
Noncredit
Intro to Biomed Informatics
for HS Librarians
Applied
MLA approved CE; 4 modules,
30 contact
hrs
Health Sciences
Librarians
Online, cohort
Roles: broker
Areas: clinical,
foundation
15
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Cost16
University
of
Pittsburgh
$14,000
/year
$25,566
/year
Credit
credit
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
MS in Biomedical
Informatics
Appl/
Resrch
Applied
Resrch
Ph.D. in Biomedical
Informatics
Interdisciplinary
Informatics Courses
Master's: Computational competency tools and concepts, wide range of
specializations; fellowship training pgms
Length17(
credit)
MS 36
credits
Cert.: 15
Ph.D.: add 18 or more credits of
research work leading to an acceptable
dissertation.
Biomedical Informatics
Training Certificate Program
Target Audience
Delivery
health prof or scientists
seeking formal training
in informational and
computational methods.
Programming basics are
a prereq.
On campus
Information
professionals;
Online; cohort
group
Focus
Roles: tool dev,
research, user,
clin/res manager
Focus: clinical,
general, bio,
public health,
esp. surveillance
Certificate: Required Biomedical
Informatics Core (4 credits), Biomedical
Informatics Distribution (student choice
of 3 courses, 9 credits), and Res Project
School of Library and Info
Sciences MS, CAS, PHD
College of
St.
Scholastica
University
of South
Florida Nursing
Credit
$233/
$894
Credit
MA, Health Information
Management
Post master's certificate
Applied
Resrch
Applied
Applied
MS in Nursing Informatics
Stanford
University
$1199/
unit
Credit
Professional Master's (PM)
Applied
MS omitted – primarily
bioinformatics
Interdisciplinary
State
University
of NY –
Downstate
Medical informatics specialization,
including FastTrack MS online program
w/ spci. In Med Lib / med informatics; 12
hrs related work in SLIS, or health
professions
MS 36
Cert. 24
PhD 54
Data management emphasis. Tech.
application in health care, process
redesign and project mgt, security, data
mining
36 – 61 (if
no RHIA
cred.)
Clinical systems applications, project
mgt, Information Systems
Roles: provider,
broker, manager
Focus: clinical,
consumer, pub
health
Variety of practicing
health professionals,
especially those already
holding RHIA or RHIT
credentials
Online ( 1 week /
year on campus)
18+
missing
pre-req.
Professional
On campus
MS adds large databases, data analysis,
information management and retrieval
46
Professional
PM: 5 categories – Biomedical
Informatics (15 units), Computer Science
(9 units), Decision Science & Statistics (9
units), Biomedical domain knowledge (9
units), Social and ethical issues (6 units)
54
PM: Intended for those
with advanced
backgrounds in biology
or medicine but lack
training in CS and/or
biomedical informatics
Online in
process, 3 days
onsite each yr
Roles: manager,
provider
Focus:
foundation
Roles: manager
Focus: clinical,
foundation
Focus: clinical or
public health
Roles:
manager, user
Areas: Clinical
and
bioinformatics
$995
Noncredit
Med informatics short
course
Applied
Broad overview, retrieval, encryption,
stds, privacy DSS, imaging, HIPPA
22.5 CME
MDs others
Online, selfpaced
Roles: user
Areas: mostly
clinical
$288 / 455
Credit
MS in Health Informatics
(Medicine / Related Health
Professions)
Applied
Information retrieval, DB, medical
imaging, internet integration, medical
DSS, evaluation of health IS
39
Wide range of
professionals
On campus
Roles: manager
Areas: clinical,
foundation
16
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Cost16
University
of Utah
$14,046
vs
$25,566
/sem
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
credit
Department of Medical
Informatics offers M.S.,
PhD, and one year Master’s
degree
clinical health information systems,
computerized decision-making,
evaluation of computerized patient care,
genetic epidemiology/Bioinformatics,
medical imaging, and medical
informatics
MS: 30
MS Clinical/Nursing
Informatics Program
Nursing Informatics: Intro to
Clinical/Nursing Informatics, Program
Planning and Development, Clinical
Systems Analysis, Clinical Database
Design, Clinical Decision Support,
Primer of IT Operations, Nursing
Informatics Seminar, Nursing Informatics
Practicum
39
Concentrations in clin sys, DSS,
Evidenced based practice, Policy and
Admin, molecular med, clin
bioinformatics; interdisciplinary electives;
MS required for PhD
MS 27-49
(Grew out of Epi background.) DB,
informatics intro, evaluation methods,
intro to bioinformatics
31
including
final
project
Vanderbilt
University
of Virginia
School of
Medicine
$500 /
1,200
Credit
Appl/
Resrch
MS or PhD Biomedical
Informatics;
Training programs esp. MD
Post graduate training
Res and
appl
MS Health Evaluation
Science, Specialty in
Informatics in Medicine and
Health
Applied
Informatics Courses
Length17(
credit)
Credit
Target Audience
One Year Master’s: for
physicians
Delivery
On campus
Focus
Roles: manager,
user
PhD: 40
Focus: clinical,
foundation
Roles: manager
Focus: mostly
clinical, some
public health
Health professional or
computer science / math
On campus
Roles: research
manager
Areas: clinical,
biomedical
Health professional
On campus
Roles: manager
Areas:
foundation
Interdisciplinary
17
Appendix A: Graduate Health Informatics Programs
School
Cost16
Credit
U
Washington
$2,622/se
m
credit
Interdisciplinary
Non-res:
$6022/se
m
Subject Area / Degree or
Certificate
Certificate Program in
Biomedical and Health
Informatics (C)
Appl/
Resrch
resrch
M.S. in Biomedical and
Health Informatics
Ph.D. in Biomedical and
Health Informatics
Informatics Courses
(C): Med Informatics, Integrated
Systems,Technical and Sociopolitical
Dimensions, Capstone project. Opt:
Computing Fundamentals for Health
Professionals, Informatics Project
Management, Biology and Informatics,
Clinical Topics and Informatics, Public
Health Surveillance and Informatics
Length17(
credit)
Cert: 5
courses
MS: 2
years
PhD: 5
years
M.S. & PH.D.: Med Informatics,
Biomedical Decision Support, Knwlge
Representation and Appli, Sociotechnical Issues in Biomed Informatics,
Biomedical info Access, Biology and
Informatics, Clinical Topics and
Informatics, Public health Surveillance
and Informatics, research or statistics
Target Audience
Delivery
(C): Certificate is
designed to address the
biomedical informatics
training needs of
graduate and
professional students
currently enrolled in
selected UW graduate
programs. Currently the
Certificate is offered to
students in the Schools
of Nursing and Public
Health, as well as the
Information School.
On campus
Medical professional or
CS / business
professional. Focus on
strategies for educating
adults
On campus with
some distance
delivery
available
Focus
Roles: user
Focus: clinical
informatics,
public health,
biology
M.S. only: 4 electives in chosen area of
specialization, seminars and thesis
Ph.D. teaching; 5 addnl courses in area
of specialization, research seminars, oral
presentations and exams
Medical
College of
Wisconsin
&
Milwaulkee
School of
Engineering
$487 /
credit
(quarter
system)
Credit
MS in Medical Informatics
Applied
Emphasis on business principles and
managing large projects
Intro, ethics, project management,
systems analyis, db, networks, decision
support
48 + 6 hrs
internship
or
research
Roles: manager
Areas: clinical,
foundation
18
Appendix B: UNC Health Informatics Courses
school(s)
course/
activity
Title
SPH
EPI 213
Public Health
Surveillance
SPH
HBHE 295
The Internet and Public
Health: Promises and
Perils
SPH
HPAA 155
Introduction to
Management Information
Systems in Health Care
SPH
HPAA 157
Database Design for
Healthcare Applications
Certificate /
Deg Program
Certificate in
Field
Epidemiology
SPH Exec
Master's
Faculty
Subject Areas
Interdiscipl
Role
Domain
Ryder, Woods
surveillance systems; GIS;
bioterrorism; fundamentals of
disease surveillance and
outbreak response primarily
using infectious disease
models. Special attention will
be given to novel surveillance
systems specifically designed
to detect outbreaks of acute
infectious disease consistent
with bioterrorism.
N
user
pub hlth
intro
skills
Ribisl
An overview of the positive
and negative impacts of the
Internet on public health.
Covers research, evaluating
sites, ethics and use of
theory that addresses key
public health problems.
conceptual and practical
aspects of the analysis,
development, and utilization
of computer-based info
systems. Issues important to
managers of health care
organizations. Focus:
transition from large,
mainframe systems to
smaller, microcomputerbased, user-oriented systems
Hands on introduction to the
design and implementation of
relational databases to
manage and analyze
healthcare data (using
Microsoft Access). Includes
design of fully automated
databases as well as the use
of Access as an analysis tool
in conjunction with Microsoft
Excel
N
user
provider
pub hlth
overview
Y
mgt
foundation
intro
skills
Y
User
foundation
Intro
skills
Potenziani/Tho
mas
Yarbrough
Mandelkehr
Level
19
Appendix B: UNC Health Informatics Courses
school(s)
course/
activity
Title
Certificate /
Deg Program
SPH
HPAA 256
PPES 254
EPI 140-2
Informatics: Use of
Large Health Care
Databases
SPH
HPAA 269
Clinical Informatics for
Outcomes Mgt
SPH
HPAA xxx
Health care information
mgt for Pub Hlth
Executives (untitled,
offered fall 2005)
SILS
INLS 11001W
Consumer Health
Information
MSLS/ MSIS
SILS
INLS 110111
GIS Digital Information:
Uses, Resources, and
Software Tools
MSIS
SILS
INLS 111
Information Resources
and Services
MSLS/MSIS
Bioinf cert
elect
Exec Masters
Faculty
Subject Areas
Interdiscipl
Role
Domain
Level
Greene, Smith,
West,
Saunders
Interdiscip. course; practical
training in the analysis of
large, secondary databases:
hospital, physician,
pharmaceutical data..Topics:
data preparation, algorithm
development, QC, dataset
limitations
Role of clinical informatics
skills and tools in healthcare
organizational performance
improvement and how role is
currently evolving in
hospitals, group practices,
and provider organizations
Change mgt, computerized
physician order entry,
electronic health records, use
of patient data for pub health
surveillance and clinical
research
Explore resources and
services to be selected and
evaluated when providing
consumer health information;
the evolution of the CHI
movement, current trends
and future projections; impact
of CHI on different segments
of society
Active course?
Y
user
pub hlth
intro
skills
?
mgt
clinical
?
?
mgt
clinical
pub hlth
overview
Y
broker
pub hlth
?
Poss
?
?
?
Poss
user
broker
foundation
intro
skills
Travers
Gollop
Analysis, use, and eval of
info and ref systems,
services, and tools with
attention to printed and
electronic modes of delivery.
Foundation in search
techniques for electronic info
retrieval, question nego, and
interviewing.
20
Appendix B: UNC Health Informatics Courses
school(s)
course/
activity
Title
Certificate /
Deg Program
SILS
INLS 131
Management of
Information Agencies
MSLS/MSIS
Bioinf cert
MHA elect
SILS
INLS 150
Organization of
Information
MSIS
Bioinf cert (or
151)
INLS 151
Organization of Materials
I
MSLS
Bioinf cert (or
150)
SILS
INLS 156
Introduction to Database
Concepts and
Applications
SILS
INLS 157
Database Systems I
MSLS/ MSIS
NURS MS
elect?
Bioinf cert
elect?
MHA elect?
MSIS
NURS MS
elect?
Bioinf cert?
Faculty
Subject Areas
Interdiscipl
Role
Domain
Level
Intro to mgt principles and
practices for information
professionals working in all
types of organizations.
Topics include planning,
budgeting, org theory,
staffing, leadership, org
change, and decision
making.
Intro to the problems and
methods of organizing info,
including info structures,
knowledge schemas, data
structures, terminological
control, index language
functions, and implications
for searching
Intro to the org of library
materials. Topics: formal
systems for description,
access, and subject
cataloging including AACR2,
MARC, Dewey Decimal
classification, Library of
Congress Classification, and
subject headings
Design and impl. of database
systems. Semantic modeling,
relational database theory,
SQL.
Y
mgt
foundation
overview
Poss
provider
broker
foundation
overview
N
provider
broker
foundation
overview
Y
dev
mgt
foundation
intro
skills
Y
dev
mgt
foundation
intermed
skills
Intermed.-level design and
implementation of database
systems, building on topics
studied in INLS 156.
Additional topics include
MySQL, non-text db, and
data warehouses.
21
Appendix B: UNC Health Informatics Courses
school(s)
course/
activity
Title
Certificate /
Deg Program
SILS
INLS 162
Systems Analysis
MSLS/ MSIS
NURS MS
elect
Bioinf cert
MHA elect
SILS
INLS 172
Information Retrieval
MSLS/MSIS
Bioinf cert
MHA elect
SILS
INLS 180
Human Information
Interactions
MSLS/MSIS
Bioinf cert
elect
SILS
INLS 181
Internet Applications
MSIS
NURS MS
elect
SILS
INLS 203
Information Systems
Effectiveness
MSIS
NURS MS
elect
Faculty
Subject Areas
Interdiscipl
Role
Domain
Level
Intro to systems approach to
the design and development
of information systems.
Methods and tools for the
analysis and modeling of
system functionality (e.g.,
structured analysis) and data
represented in the system
(e.g., object-oriented
analysis)
Study of info retrieval &
question answering
techniques, including
document classif., retrieval
and eval. techniques,
handling of large data
collections, use of feedback.
Behavioral and cognitive
activities of those who
interact with information,
emphasis on the role of
information mediators. How
info needs are recognized
and resolved; use and
dissemination of info. .
Intro to Internet concepts,
apps, and services. Intro to
TCP/IP protocol; clients and
servers for Internet comm.,
browsing, and navigation.
Topics: policy, mgt, and
implementation issues.
Performance measurement
and methodology in the
evaluation of information
systems and services. Roles
of objectives, performance
measures, data collection
approaches, and analytical
approaches
Y
dev
mgt
foundation
intro
skills
Y
provider
broker
user
foundation
intro
skills
Poss
provider
foundation
intro
skills
Y
dev
mgt
foundation
overview
Y
mgt
foundation
overview
22
Appendix B: UNC Health Informatics Courses
school(s)
course/
activity
Title
Certificate /
Deg Program
Faculty
SILS
INLS 21003W
Evidence-based
Medicine and the
Medical Librarian
MSLS
Schardt
SILS
INLS 216
Health Sciences
Environment
MSLS/MSIS
Monnig
SILS
INLS 225
Health Sciences
Information
MSLS/MSIS
SILS
INLS 257
User Interface Design
MSIS
NURS MS
elect
MHA Elect
Subject Areas
Interdiscipl
Role
Domain
Level
optional10 CEUs).Intro to the
practice of evidence-based
medicine (EBM). use of the
scientific literature in the
clinical decision making
process. developing good
clinical questions; identifying
reliable resources and
effective searching
strategies; and evaluating the
quality of research studies,
role of the r librarian in the
practice of EBM.
Trends in health care
delivery, biomedical
research, and health
sciences education with
emphasis on the impact and
use of information. Includes
observation of clinical and
research settings.
Survey of information used in
the health sciences
disciplines and professions:
the org. of sources, current
techniques, and tools for its
control.
Basic principles for designing
the human interface to
information systems,
emphasizing computerassisted systems. Major
topics: users' conceptual
models of systems, human
information processing
capabilities, styles of
interfaces, and evaluation
methods. Prereq: INLS 162
(Sys. An.)
Poss
user
provider
clinical
intro
skills
N
provider
foundation
overview
Poss
user
provider
foundation
intro
skills
Y
provider
dev
foundation
intermed
skills
23
Appendix B: UNC Health Informatics Courses
school(s)
course/
activity
Title
Certificate /
Deg Program
Faculty
MED
MEDI 134
Pre-clinical Informatics
MD
Juliani, Collins
(HSL)
NURS
NURS 117
Informatics
MSN - required
for Health Care
systems spec;
elective for
others
Boyington
PHARM
PHCY 101
Pharmacoinformatics
Pharm D
elective
Golbraikh
PHARM
PHCY 616
PUBH 616
Health Care Informatics
not listed as a
pharmacy or
pub health
elective in web
pgm
descriptions
Smith, Brock
Subject Areas
Interdiscipl
Role
Domain
Level
Intro to library resources;
triaging Information
resources;personal
productivity and web
development; PubMED skills;
Privacy and security
(HIPAA); Biblio info mgt.
(Endnote), intro to evidenced
Based Medicine. Uses
cases.
This course provides an
overview of the diverse
options for the use of
computerized systems in
health care organizations
anddelivery of health care.
Topics: theories, concepts,
and principles relevant to
health care informatics;
integration of data,
information, and knowledge
for clin and admin decisionmaking.
Appl of info and
communication technologies
in medicine and pharmacy;
Use the general purpose
informatics software; handson skills in web page design
and development
develop skills for using
technology to solve clinical
and public health problems;
increase K and skils in heath
infomatics, teach skills for
using technology to develop
an evidence-based practice
N
user
clinical
intro
skills
Y
mgt
foundation
clinical
overview
Y
user
clinical
intro
skills
Y
user
clinical
pub hlth
intro
skills
24
Appendix C: UNC Health Informatics Courses by Topic
Selected Topics – Part I
Selected Topics – Part I
School
Course
SPH
EPI 213
SPH
HBHE
295
SPH
SPH
HPAA
155
HPAA
157
Public Health Surveillance
The Internet and Public
Health: Promises and
Perils
Introduction to
Management Information
Systems in Health Care
Database Design for
Healthcare Applications
Domain
N
pub hlth
Level
intro
skills
Poss
pub hlth
overview
Y
foundation
Y
foundation
intro
skills
Intro
skills
Y
pub hlth
intro
skills
?
clinical
?
?
clinical
overview
Y
pub hlth
?
Poss
?
Poss
foundation
?
intro
skills
Y
Poss
N
foundation
foundation
foundation
overview
overview
overview
intro
skills
SILS
HPAA
xxx
INLS
110-01W
SILS
INLS
110-111
SILS
INLS 111
SILS
SILS
INLS 131
INLS 150
INLS 151
Informatics: Use of Large
Health Care Databases
Clinical Informatics for
Outcomes Mgt
Health care information
mgt for Pub Hlth
Executives
Consumer Health
Information
GIS Digital Information:
Uses, Resources, and
Software Tools
Information Resources and
Services
Management of
Information Agencies
Organization of Information
Organization of Materials I
SILS
INLS 156
Introduction to Database
Concepts and Applications
Y
foundation
SILS
INLS 157
Database Systems I
Y
foundation
SILS
INLS 162
Systems Analysis
Y
foundation
SILS
INLS 172
Y
foundation
SILS
SILS
INLS 180
INLS 181
Poss
Y
foundation
foundation
SILS
INLS 203
Information Retrieval
Human Information
Interactions
Internet Applications
Information Systems
Effectiveness
intermed
skills
intro
skills
intro
skills
intro
skills
overview
Y
foundation
overview
SPH
SPH
SPH
HPAA
256
HPAA
269
Title
Interdiscipl
GIS
Surveil
-lance
Y
Y
Social
impact
Req'ments
Privacy
security
Communication
Org
chg
Sys
design
RFP
dev
Y
Y
Proj
mgt
Sys
eval
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
25
Appendix C: UNC Health Informatics Courses by Topic
Selected Topics – Part I
Interdiscipl
Domain
Level
Y
clinical
intro
skills
N
foundation
Y
foundation
User Interface Design
Y
foundation
Pre-clinical Informatics
parts
clinical
Informatics
Y
foundation
clinical
Pharmacoinformatics
Y
clinical
overview
intro
skills
Y
clinical
pub hlth
intro
skills
School
Course
Title
SILS
INLS
210-03W
SILS
INLS 216
SILS
INLS 225
Evidence-based Medicine
and the Medical Librarian
Health Sciences
Environment
Health Sciences
Information
SILS
INLS 257
MEDI
134
MED
PHARM
NURS
117
PHCY
101
PHARM
PHCY 616
PUBH 616
NURS
Health Care Informatics
GIS
Surveil
-lance
Social
impact
Req'ments
overview
intro
skills
Privacy
security
Communication
Org
chg
Sys
design
RFP
dev
Proj
mgt
Sys
eval
Y
intermed
skills
intro
skills
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Selected Topics – Part II
Selected Topics – Part II
School
Course
SPH
EPI 213
SPH
HBHE
295
SPH
SPH
SPH
SPH
SPH
SILS
HPAA
155
HPAA
157
HPAA
256
HPAA
269
HPAA
xxx
INLS
110-01W
Title
Public Health Surveillance
The Internet and Public
Health: Promises and
Perils
Introduction to
Management Information
Systems in Health Care
Database Design for
Healthcare Applications
Informatics: Use of Large
Health Care Databases
Clinical Informatics for
Outcomes Mgt
Health care information
mgt for Pub Hlth
Executives
Consumer Health
Information
Interdiscipl
Domain
Level
N
pub hlth
intro skills
Poss
pub hlth
overview
Y
foundation
intro skills
Y
foundation
Intro skills
Y
pub hlth
intro skills
?
?
Y
clinical
clinical
pub hlth
DB
design
Info
eval
Data
analysis
Org
Chg
Clinical
Sys
Y
Y
Search
Internet
dev
Decision
supp
Y
Y
Y
Y
?
overview
?
Y
26
Appendix C: UNC Health Informatics Courses by Topic
Selected Topics – Part II
School
SILS
INLS
110-111
SILS
INLS 111
SILS
SILS
INLS 131
INLS 150
INLS 151
Title
GIS Digital Information:
Uses, Resources, and
Software Tools
Information Resources and
Services
Management of
Information Agencies
Organization of Information
Organization of Materials I
INLS 156
Introduction to Database
Concepts and Applications
SILS
Course
SILS
SILS
SILS
INLS 157
INLS 162
INLS 172
SILS
SILS
INLS 180
INLS 181
SILS
INLS 203
SILS
INLS
210-03W
SILS
INLS 216
SILS
INLS 225
SILS
MED
NURS
PHARM
PHARM
INLS 257
MEDI
134
NURS
117
PHCY
101
PHCY
616
PUBH
616
Database Systems I
Systems Analysis
Information Retrieval
Human Information
Interactions
Internet Applications
Information Systems
Effectiveness
Evidence-based Medicine
and the Medical Librarian
Health Sciences
Environment
Health Sciences
Information
Interdiscipl
Domain
Level
Poss
?
?
Poss
foundation
intro skills
Y
Poss
N
foundation
foundation
foundation
overview
overview
overview
Y
foundation
intro skills
Y
Y
Y
Y
foundation
foundation
foundation
intermed
skills
intro skills
intro skills
Y
Y
Poss
Y
foundation
foundation
intro skills
overview
Y
foundation
overview
Poss
clinical
intro skills
Y
N
foundation
overview
Y
Poss
foundation
intro skills
Y
User Interface Design
Y
foundation
intermed
skills
Pre-clinical Informatics
N
clinical
intro skills
Informatics
Y
foundation
clinical
overview
Pharmacoinformatics
Y
clinical
intro skills
Health Care Informatics
Y
clinical
pub hlth
intro skills
DB
design
Info
eval
Data
analysis
Org
Chg
Clinical
Sys
Y
Search
Internet
dev
Decision
supp
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
27
Appendix D: Public Health Foundation – CE courses in the "Informatics"
Category
Title
Provider
Format
Rating
Agent GXP FDA Part 11
Electronic Records
UniversityOfHealthCare/UniversityOfBusiness
Web-based Training
- Self-study
no
reviews
Health Care Statistics
Pitt Community College
Web-based Training
- Facilitated
no
reviews
Health Economics Information
National Information Center on Health Services Web-based Training no
- Self-study
reviews
Resources: A Self Study Course Research and Health Care Technology
HIPAA Focused Training 4 Data
UniversityOfHealthCare/UniversityOfBusiness
and Computer Security
Web-based Training
- Self-study
no
reviews
Information Management in
Public Health Settings
Web-based Training
- Self-study
no
reviews
University of South Florida - College of Public
Health
Public Health Grand Rounds:
Wired Communities: Putting the UNC/CDC
'E' in Public Health
Webstream/Archived no
Webcast
reviews
The Role of
Information/Communication
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Technology and
(AHRQ)
Monitoring/Surveillance Systems
in Bioterrorism Preparedness
Webstream/Archived no
Webcast
reviews
28
Appendix E: Non-university Informatics Continuing Education Providers
Continuing Education Providers - Associations
Name
Members
Medical Library Association
http://www.mlanet.org
3,610 indiv,
1,048
institutions
50,000 indiv.
American Public Health
Assn.
http://www.apha.org
Directors of Health Promotion
and Education
http://www.dhpe.org/
Association of State Health
Officers
http://www.astho.org/
Society for Public Health
Education
http://www.sophe.org/
American Association for
Health Education
http://www.aahperd.org/aahe/
American Health Information
Management Association
http://www.ahima.org/
Target
Audience
Medical
Librarians
Education
Public Health
Professionals
www.train.org
varies
Directors and
associate
members
State Health
Leadership
Self-study materials,
some online
$25 and up
Webcasts and
publications
NA
4,000
Educators
$14-400
~8,000
Educators
2 conferences each yr,
video conf, self study
articles (CHES credit)
Journal-based self
study
50,000
managing,
analyzing, and
utilizing data
vital for patient
care
Information
systems
managers
Online courses, audio
conferences,
conferences
$95-$300
Oregon Health Sci. U,
Conn, certificates. MC
Strategies courses in
HIPAA, mgt, systems.
In 15-20 min sessions
Web conferences,
seminars, self-study,
satellite
$20 - ????
~400
~50
Healthcare Information
Management Systems
Association
http://www.himss.org
15,000 indiv
220 corp
American College of
Healthcare Executives
http://www.ache.org/
26,000
Healthcare
organizations
managers
Event Cost
Certifications Offered
Consumer Health
Information Specialist
$165- ~$1,000
Registered Health
Information Administrator,
Certification in Healthcare
Privacy, in Healthcare
Security, in both
Certified Healthcare
Executive, Fellow of the
American College of
Healthcare Executives
29
Appendix F: Informatics Credentials and Continuing Education Certification
Agencies
Note: This list includes includes only those certifications and credentials requiring at least a BA degree.
American Health Informatics Association (AHIMA)
Health Information Management

Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) 18 - education and experience (More
experience with BS, less with PhD) ; pass exam plus education and experience, maintain via 30
clock-hours of CE credits every 2 years.
Healthcare Privacy and Security



Certified in Healthcare Privacy (CHP)19 education and experience (More experience with BS,
less with PhD); pass exam, maintain via 30 clock-hours of credits every 2 years; 15 must be
directly related to privacy
Certified in Healthcare Security (CHS) 20 education and experience; pass exam, maintain via 30
clock-hours of credits every 2 years; 15 must be directly related to security
Certified in Healthcare Privacy and Security (CHPS) pass CHP and CHS exam, maintain 40
clock-hours of credits every 2 years; 10 related to privacy, 10 related to security
American Nurses Credentialing Center
Nursing Informatics Certification21

Certification requires education plus experience, more experience with BS, less with PhD and 30
hours of CE credit within the prior 3 years. Certification lasts for five years. Renewal
requirements include 1,000 practice hours and either 75 CE contact hours or 5 academic
semester-hour credits
Medical Library Association
Consumer Health Information Specialist22


Level I requires 12 contact hours of CE, 8 of which must be MLA-approved. Available for both
librarians and non-librarians. Valid for 3 years; renewal requires 8 contact hours.
Level II requires 24 contact hours of CE, 18 of which must be MLA-approved. Valid for 3 years;
renewal requires 8 contact hours.
National Commission for Health Education Credentialing
Certified Health Education Specialist23

Certification requires degree or 25 semester hours in health educator-related coursework and
passing the certification exam. Certification must be renewed every five years with 75 contact
hours of CE during that time. Of that 75, at least 45 must come from NCEHC-approved
providers.
18
http://www.ahima.org/certification/what.cfm#rhia
http://www.ahima.org/certification/what.cfm#chp
http://www.ahima.org/certification/what.cfm#chs
21
http://www.nursingworld.org/ancc/certification/cert/certs/informatics.html
22
http://www.mlanet.org/pdf/ce/p&p-final-21.pdf
23
http://www.nchec.org/becomeches/eligibility.asp
19
20
Page 30
Appendix F: Informatics Credentials and Continuing Education Certification
Agencies
Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society
Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS)24

Certification requires BS or higher degree plus experience in health systems
administration/management, clinical information systems, e-health, information systems, or
management engineering. Certification lasts for 3 years and may be renewed by 45 contact
hours of continuing professional education in information and management systems, with a
minimum of 25 contact hours from HIMSS approved continuing professional education.
Accrediting Council for Continuing Medical Education
Approves organizations for offering Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit. Lists approved
organizations and those receiving exemplary accreditation.
American College of Healthcare Executives
Certified Healthcare Executive (CHE)

Certification requires BS or higher degree plus experience in health systems management,
passing the certification exam, an additional 12 hours continuing education credit within the prior
two years, participation and leadership in healthcare and community/civic affairs, and holding a
position in healthcare management with significant responsibilities. Recertification every 3 years
requires 24 contact hours of CE (12 ACHE approved). Attendance at the annual Congress earns
12 hours of CE credit.
Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE)

24
Certification requires three years' with CHE certification in good standing, holding a healthcare
management position or a healthcare management-related position of sufficient duties and
responsibilities, 24 hours of continuing education within the past three years, evidence of
participation and leadership in healthcare and community/civic affairs, and successful completion
of a Fellow project.
http://www.himss.org/ASP/certification_cphims.asp
Page 31
Appendix G: Health Informatics Credentials and CE Certification Agencies
Note: This list includes only those certifications and credentials requiring at least a BA degree.
American Health Informatics Association (AHIMA)
Health Information Management

Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA)25 - education and experience (More
experience with BS, less with PhD) ; pass exam plus education and experience, maintain via 30
clock-hours of CE credits every 2 years.
Healthcare Privacy and Security



Certified in Healthcare Privacy (CHP)26 education and experience (More experience with BS,
less with PhD); pass exam, maintain via 30 clock-hours of credits every 2 years; 15 must be
directly related to privacy
Certified in Healthcare Security (CHS) 27 education and experience; pass exam, maintain via 30
clock-hours of credits every 2 years; 15 must be directly related to security
Certified in Healthcare Privacy and Security (CHPS) pass CHP and CHS exam, maintain 40
clock-hours of credits every 2 years; 10 related to privacy, 10 related to security
American Nurses Credentialing Center
Nursing Informatics Certification28

Certification requires education plus experience, more experience with BS, less with PhD and 30
hours of CE credit within the prior 3 years. Certification lasts for five years. Renewal
requirements include 1,000 practice hours and either 75 CE contact hours or 5 academic
semester-hour credits
Medical Library Association
Consumer Health Information Specialist29


Level I requires 12 contact hours of CE, 8 of which must be MLA-approved. Available for both
librarians and non-librarians. Valid for 3 years; renewal requires 8 contact hours.
Level II requires 24 contact hours of CE, 18 of which must be MLA-approved. Valid for 3 years;
renewal requires 8 contact hours.
National Commission for Health Education Credentialing
Certified Health Education Specialist30

Certification requires degree or 25 semester hours in health educator-related coursework and
passing the certification exam. Certification must be renewed every five years with 75 contact
hours of CE during that time. Of that 75, at least 45 must come from NCEHC-approved
providers.
25
http://www.ahima.org/certification/what.cfm#rhia
http://www.ahima.org/certification/what.cfm#chp
http://www.ahima.org/certification/what.cfm#chs
28
http://www.nursingworld.org/ancc/certification/cert/certs/informatics.html
29
http://www.mlanet.org/pdf/ce/p&p-final-21.pdf
30
http://www.nchec.org/becomeches/eligibility.asp
26
27
Page 32
Appendix G: Health Informatics Credentials and CE Certification Agencies
Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society
Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS) 31

Certification requires BS or higher degree plus experience in health systems
administration/management, clinical information systems, e-health, information systems, or
management engineering. Certification lasts for 3 years and may be renewed by 45 contact
hours of continuing professional education in information and management systems, with a
minimum of 25 contact hours from HIMSS approved continuing professional education.
Accrediting Council for Continuing Medical Education
Approves organizations for offering Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit. Lists approved
organizations and those receiving exemplary accreditation.
American College of Healthcare Executives
Certified Healthcare Executive (CHE)

Certification requires BS or higher degree plus experience in health systems management,
passing the certification exam, an additional 12 hours continuing education credit within the prior
two years, participation and leadership in healthcare and community/civic affairs, and holding a
position in healthcare management with significant responsibilities. Recertification every 3 years
requires 24 contact hours of CE (12 ACHE approved). Attendance at the annual Congress earns
12 hours of CE credit.
Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE)

31
Certification requires three years' with CHE certification in good standing, holding a healthcare
management position or a healthcare management-related position of sufficient duties and
responsibilities, 24 hours of continuing education within the past three years, evidence of
participation and leadership in healthcare and community/civic affairs, and successful completion
of a Fellow project.
http://www.himss.org/ASP/certification_cphims.asp
Page 33
Appendix H: SILS Certificate in Bioinformatics
School of Library and Information Science
Certificate of Specialization in Bioinformatics
A certificate of Specialization in Bioinformatics from SILS is awarded in conjunction with either
the Master’s of Library Science or Master’s of Information Science degrees from the School of
Information and Library Science. To earn this certificate a currently enrolled student must
complete the following requirements.
Requirements to earn a Certificate of Specialization in Bioinformatics
1. Successful completion of the MSIS or MSLS degree from SILS. This requires 48 hours of
approved graduate course work.
2. Successful completion of the following graduate level courses. Most of these courses are
already required as part of the master’s degree. Courses can be waived with the permission of the
program director if equivalent previous course work can be demonstrated.
Certificate
Required Courses
(may already be required
by Master’s Degree)
Biostatistics
Biological Sciences
Course
Description
INLS 102
INLS 131
INLS 150 or 151
INLS 162
INLS 172
INLS 180
INLS 201
INLS 256
INLS 279 (repeat: min 2, max 4)
INLS 392
3 credit hours minimum
6 credit hours minimum
Information Tools
Management of Info Agencies
Organization of Info/Materials
Systems Analysis
Information Retrieval
Human Information Interactions
Research Methods
Database I
Bioinformatics Research Review
Master’s Paper
See options below
See options below
Biostatistics Course(s): At least one three credit course from the following:
BIOS 101 Fundamentals of Biostatistics
BIOS 110 Principles of Statistical Inference
Biological Sciences Courses: At least two three credit courses from the following:
BME 151: From Genes to Tissues: Molecular Biology and Genetics…
BIO 122 Human Genetics (Prerequisite BIO 50)
BIO 162 Computational Genomics
BIO 164 Molecular Biology (Prerequisite BIO 50 and CHEM 61)
BIO 130 Introduction to Biological Chemistry (CHEM 130 is same course)
BIOCHEM 105 Molecular Biology
BIOCHEM 276 Macromolecular Modeling (Prerequisite CHEM 130)
BIOCHEM 134 Case Studies in Molecular Biology (Prerequisite CHEM 130)
For the required biostatistics and biological sciences courses, students may substitute other similar
courses of their choosing with permission of the program director. Biostatistics and Biological
Sciences courses may count towards the SILS master’s degree 48 credit hours requirement.
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Appendix H: SILS Certificate in Bioinformatics
Elective Courses: In completing the 48 graduate credit hours required for a master’s, the student
has the option of taking additional SILS courses. Listed below are courses recommended as
elective options for students earning the Certificate of Specialization in Bioinformatics.
INLS 111 Information Resources and Services
INLS 145 Introduction to Archives and Record Management
INLS 161 Non-numeric programming
INLS 211 Information Retrieval Search Strategies
INLS 222 Science Information
INLS 225 Health Sciences Information
INLS 235 Digital Libraries: Principles and Applications
INLS 252 MetaData
INLS 257 User Interface Design
INLS 258 Database II
INLS 259 Web Databases
INLS 265 Abstracting and Indexing for Information Retrieval
3. The student is expected to complete a significant project in the area of bioinformatics. This can
be satisfied by either (1) successfully completing a Master’s project/paper in the area of
bioinformatics; (2) working on a research project in an academic environment (research rotation,
project course, etc); or (3) experience in a commercial setting, for instance a summer internship
with a company, or previous work experience. The work to satisfy this requirement must be
approved by the director of the SILS bioinformatics certificate program. Training projects are
expected to be on the order of 10 hrs/week for one semester or one full summer (both summer
sessions). Current training program projects include research rotations with UNC faculty members
participating in the UNC bioinformatics curriculum, internships with Health Sciences library, and
internships with pharmaceutical companies in the Research Triangle.
Equivalent Classes
Students who have taken similar courses to those on the required list may apply for waivers for any
of these courses. For instance if a student earned a grade equivalent to a graduate Pass
(undergraduate C) or better in an undergraduate course in BioChemistry that was equivalent to BIO
130, they could apply to waive this required course. Also, students may substitute, with the
approval of the Bioinformatics Program Director, a similar or more advanced course for one of the
listed courses.
Performance in classes
Students must successfully complete their coursework. The requirements are the same as for the
general Master’s degree. A student automatically becomes ineligible for the program upon receipt
of one failing grade (“F”), or nine or more hours of “L” (low pass). SILS policy states that
students with six or more credit hours of "IN" (incomplete) or "AB" (absent from final exam) will
have the number of courses for which they may register restricted in subsequent semesters. A
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Appendix H: SILS Certificate in Bioinformatics
student in this situation may not exceed nine combined credit hours of outstanding incompletes and
registered credit hours.
Example Course Work to Earn Bioinformatics Certificate
Library of Science Master’s student example
This student has an undergraduate education that included only an introductory undergraduate level
chemistry course. Based on his undergraduate courses he waives the INLS 102 requirement. He
learns about bioinformatics during the spring semester of his first year and begins with the
bioinformatics seminar the 2nd year. Because of his broad ranging interests and late start, he
chooses to spread his course work out over five semesters. He does a master’s paper related to his
research rotation with the Genetics department. Total credits earned: 58.
Library Science
Master’s Student
1st Year
Fall
Spring
INLS 131
INLS 151
INLS 180
INLS 111
INLS 256
INLS 161
INLS 153
INLS 252
2nd Year
BIO 130
BIOS 101
BMME 151
INLS 145
INLS 279 (1)
INLS 257
INLS 310
INLS 201
INLS 110-19 (1)
INLS 279 (1)
3rd Year
INLS 172
INLS 392
INLS 225
INLS 279 (1)
Summer
Research rotation with
bioinformatics faculty
member in Genetics
department at UNC.
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Appendix H: SILS Certificate in Bioinformatics
Information Science Master’s student example
This student has an undergraduate education that includes biology and chemistry course work.
Based on her undergraduate courses she waives the INLS 102 and BIO 130 requirements.
She knows she has an interest in bioinformatics and begins with the bioinformatics seminar the 1st
year. She takes Biology 162 (Computational Genomics) and Biostatistics 110 (Principles of
Statistical Inference) as part of her 48 credit hours for her master’s of information science. She
does a master’s paper in bioinformatics as a follow-up to her internship with the Health Sciences
Library. Total credits earned: 49.
Information
Science
Master’s Student
1st Year
Fall
Spring
Summer
INLS 131
INLS 150
INLS 162
INLS 172
INLS 279 (1)
INLS 256
INLS 161
INLS 180
INLS 111
INLS 110-19 (1)
Internship with Health
Sciences Library
2nd Year
BIO 162
BIOS 110
INLS 201
INLS 201
INLS 279 (1)
INLS 310
INLS 252
INLS 392
INLS 279 (1)
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