Skip to main content
Indiana University School of Medicine
MD Education Program

Health Information Technology Scholarly Concentration

Technology is omnipresent in health care. In the Health Information Technology Scholarly Concentration, students gain an understanding of the components, concepts and relationships necessary to create, implement and use clinical information systems effectively. Through coursework and hands-on experiences, students learn to become better physicians by leveraging technology systems in increasingly complex health care systems.

Locations

All concentration coursework can be completed online. The scholarly project work occurs in Indianapolis.

Curriculum and Timeline

Students completing the Health Informatics concentration fulfill the same core curriculum as students in other concentrations. The didactic components provide a strong academic and experiential foundation in health information technology that is vital for completion of the core curriculum project and product.

Topic-Specific Courses

Health Informatics Scholarship

Public Health Informatics Scholarship

Core Curriculum

Fundamentals of Research and Scholarship

Scholarly Concentration Project

Scholarly Concentration Product

Recommended Pathway

This table shows that the first two topic specific courses should be completed during the summer between the first and second year of med school. The third topic specific courses should be taken during phase one in year two. The two remaining courses, project and product, are longitudinal. The project can begin as soon as phase one in year two of med school, while the product should begin during phase three and conclude on or before the end of fourth year.

Students determine if a concentration pathway will fit in their schedule by contacting concentration co-directors. 

Scholarly Project Topic Examples

Students work with faculty to complete a project in a relevant topic based on student interests. Students are welcome to come up with their own project idea. Potential project topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Opiate analytics and visualizations
  • Clinical decision support
  • Operational research
  • Health information exchange
  • Social determinants of health
  • Population health
  • Care coordination
  • Electronic health record integration
  • Clinical informatics applications
  • Retrospective data-based studies

Co-Directors

Brian E. Dixon, PhD

Research Scientist, Center for Biomedical Informatics and Center for Health Services Research, Regenstrief Institute Associate Professor, Department of Epidemiology, IU Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health Director of Public Health Informatics, Regenstrief Institute, Inc. and IU Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health Affiliate Scientist, VA Health Services Research and Development Center for Health Information and Communication, Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center

Bio and Contact Information

map shows the location of the health information technology concentration in indianapolis

MD Student News

In their words: Scholarly Concentration Q&A with Health Information Technology co-directors

John Finnell, MD, and Brian Dixon, PhD, share details on the Health Information Technology Scholarly Concentration, in which students gain an understanding of the components, concepts and relationships necessary to create, implement and use clinical information systems effectively. 

IU School of Medicine  |  Feb 11, 2019