As the demand for data science-related skill sets continues to grow, colleges and universities are developing new programs to keep up. The field of Health Informatics is no exception: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in health information is projected to grow 15 percent through 2024, more than double the average growth for all occupations in the U.S.

The new Master’s of Health Informatics program at St. Catherine University in St. Paul is designed to give graduates the highly-specific skills necessary to work in Health Informatics. According to Program Director Merdi Rafiei, PhD, CHDA, the program emphasizes advanced research design and analytics; integration across data sets, systems and national boundaries; and practical expertise in cybersecurity and defense. Students learn to lead and influence this field through rigorous studies in:

• Data management and applied health/data science
• Acquisition: data quality and privacy
• Applied analytics for clinical, financial and administrative data
• Data Visualization

From a professional perspective, students immerse themselves in practice that teaches them to:

• Implement, adapt and validate existing informatics concepts and approaches as they relate to specific healthcare problems
• Collaborate across disciplines to define, discuss and resolve key issues in healthcare
• Provide ethical leadership in the promotion of data privacy and cybersecurity  
• Conduct research that advances the body of knowledge and standards associated with the management of health information in the electronic health environment
• Engage in executive level, enterprise-wide research and information systems activities

For more information on St. Catherine’s Master’s in Health Informatics, visit www.stkate.edu/MHI.