Health Informatics

According to the HIMSS website health informatics is “As defined by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, health informatics is the interdisciplinary study of the design, development, adoption, and application of IT-based innovations in healthcare services delivery, management, and planning.” Health Informatics is transforming healthcare in many different ways. Some of the ways I have personally seen are the use of programs like My Chart, which allows the patient to track their healthcare visits, testing, and results in one location. Personal health records (PHR) are a great tool for both the physician and patient. Another way is being able to send your prescription electronically to the pharmacy, this allows for faster processing and less wait times for the patient.
My first goal is to have a better understanding of databases. I have a very general understanding now but would like my skillset to be more on par with someone who can work with them on a daily basis. My second goal is to gain more knowledge in the area of informatics. Informatics is such a broad area and new to the healthcare field that you can easily get lost. I feel that getting a better understanding in this area will help me with my main goal of becoming a CIO. My third goal is to understand some of the clinical workflows. Since I have never worked in the healthcare field this area is very new to me. I feel that going through this program combined with the knowledge I gained in my undergrad that I will be able to gain the understanding that I seek.
I feel that in getting my Masters of Informatics degree that I will be able to expand my career opportunities and reach my goal of becoming a CIO in the healthcare field. I feel that this program will allow me to practice and improve my skills in so many areas that I will be a more valuable asset to any company. The semester that we will spend completing our practicum will be great hands on