As the healthcare and digital health landscape undergoes rapid change, the Master of Health Informatics (MHI) program is adapting.
By: Marielle Boutin
Launched in 2008, the MHI program has been instrumental in driving the transition from paper to electronic medical records (EMRs) over the last decade. With enrolment growing from 55 in 2023 to 90 in 2024, the program equips early-career professionals and established leaders with the skills necessary to navigate and shape this new evolving era of healthcare.
According to Dr. Karim Keshavjee, Director of the Master of Health Informatics program, credit must be given to the students for being at the forefront of this revolution.
“Our students helped to lay the foundation for a more connected and data-driven healthcare system, ensuring that patient information could be accessed and shared seamlessly across different care settings,” says Dr. Keshavjee.
Now, the focus is shifting from simply having these systems in place to optimizing and evolving them using modern technologies.
Looking ahead, the MHI program is turning its attention towards integrating advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), wearables, and other emerging digital tools, into EMR systems.
“These technologies are not just add-ons, they are integral to the program’s approach to enhancing healthcare delivery and patient outcomes,” says Dr. Keshavjee. “Our students are taught to analyze, interpret, and deliver the vast amounts of data generated by EMRs and electronic health records (EHRs) to patients and providers. This ability to leverage data is crucial for driving proactive, informed decision-making in healthcare and for making processes more efficient and less cognitively taxing.”
Since its launch, the program has expanded significantly, adding a curriculum option to attract more senior leaders from across the country through the Executive Master of Health Informatics (EMHI) program.
“Our focus is on preparing students to drive change,” says Dr. Keshavjee. “We’ve increased the reach of the EMHI program and expanded our courses to include the skills necessary for leadership in digital health. These skills are essential for anyone looking to make a strategic impact in healthcare.”
A crucial aspect of the MHI program is its focus on integrating and optimizing advanced technologies in healthcare to improve patient outcomes. The program’s curriculum is designed with input from alumni who are actively working in the field, ensuring that the skills taught are directly relevant to current workplace demands. Students are provided with advanced tools to help them with systems thinking and to experiment with and understand the impact of various policies on patient populations and budgets.
“Our stakeholders report that our students are more creative, have better critical thinking, are excellent communicators, and exhibit exceptional leadership skills,” says Dr. Keshavjee. “These qualities are critical as we look to improve healthcare systems and patient outcomes.”
Being able to apply these skills learned is another extension of the MHI program. Several leadership initiatives have been launched under the umbrella of the program to empower students to influence the healthcare system and become effective leaders of change.
The Future of Health Leadership, Informatics and Policy (FHLIP) conference, which was first held in February of 2024, provides students and faculty with a platform to share their research and engage with a wide range of interest holders to validate their ideas. Cutting-edge courses offer students the opportunity to share their completed assignments through media articles and social media posts to engage in discussion and dialogue and to influence the direction of the healthcare system.
The MHI program is committed to preparing students for leadership roles in the ongoing digital health revolution. With significant improvements to the curriculum, as measured by stakeholder feedback, and the development of new courses tailored to the needs of the industry, the program continues to evolve alongside the healthcare landscape.
“Our students continue to share that the knowledge and skills they acquire in the program are directly applicable when they start their practicum,” says Dr. Keshavjee. “This real-world relevance is key to our mission of driving health system transformation.”
As healthcare technologies continue to advance, the MHI program will carry on evolving to meet the needs of multiple stakeholders in our healthcare system.
For Dr. Keshavjee, collaboration and leadership in driving transformative change continue to be top of mind as the program continues to evolve.
“By working together, we can achieve the sweeping changes needed to transform healthcare for the better, ensuring that our graduates are not just participants but leaders in this exciting new era of health system transformation.”
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Communications
Marielle Boutin
Email Address: ihpme.communications@utoronto.ca