Recent studies show the healthcare industry is likely to increase the hiring of health informaticists with both clinical and technical skills over the next two years, making this an ideal time to enroll in Health Information Technology certificate courses.
In collaboration with Regenstrief Institute, an internationally respected biomedical and public health informatics innovator dedicated to improving health by enhancing the quality and delivery of medical care, and the IU School of Medicine, the School of Informatics and Computing is once again offering specialized one-year IU graduate certificate programs, which are designed to increase the number of health IT specialists in Indiana and nationwide, thanks in part to funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. Deadline to apply for spring 2013 is Sept. 15. For questions regarding the possibility of receiving tuition assistance, please contact Mandy Nyhuis (amnyhuis@regenstrief.org).
“HIT is booming from all different aspects, and yet, folks are not properly trained in how to use or implement the systems. What we’ve seen, anecdotally, is that employees are getting pushed more into managing HIT systems or implementing HIT systems who haven’t had the formal training and education to do so,” said J.T. Finnell, director and associate professor of Health Informatics. “Indiana is, without a doubt, a national leader in HIT. The windfall from the federal ARRA funds supports that fact. These funds are helping us combat the shortage of HIT workers in Indiana so we can sustain and strengthen the state’s HIT might.”
Finnell, who is also associate professor of emergency medicine for the Indiana University School of Medicine and research scientist for the Regenstrief Institute, said for those healthcare or information technology professionals interested in learning new skills and increasing job security, the one-year graduate programs in HIT are something to consider.
Each of the five programs is designed to develop much-needed and qualified health IT leaders for private and public health care organizations. These training programs include:
Certificate in Clinical Informatics (Clinician Leader)
Certificate in Informatics for Public Health Professionals (Public Health Leader)
Certificate in Informatics in Health Information Management and Exchange (Health Information Management Exchange Specialist)
Certificate in Informatics in Health Information Security (Health Information Privacy and Security Specialist)
Certificate in Informatics in Health Information Systems Architecture (Programmer and Software Engineer)
Qualified applicants must hold a four-year or advanced degree from an accredited institution and may include the following (please see the “Checklist for Accepted Students” document for tuition support eligibility details):
- Physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, pharmacists and other practicing clinicians
- Health care administrators
- Information technology or computer science professionals
- Health researchers and informaticians
- Others with interest and background in health care or information technology
Detailed information on the programs to be offered in the spring of 2013 and link to the application can be found at www.in-info-web2.https://luddy.indianapolis.iu.edu/HITtraining. Additional information on ONC is located at http://www.healthit.hhs.gov.
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