Health Informatics

RN to BSN students may pursue a Health Informatics focus that allows them to take three graduate level courses (9 credits) that substitute for courses in their program. Advisors can help students make the appropriate substitutions.

RN to BSN students, regardless of which option they choose to pursue can count the following graduate-level courses towards their BSN program requirements. Additional health informatics courses are available and may be substituted with approval from and in consultation with the student’s undergraduate advisor. You can find the full list of available courses in the catalog at http://catalog.kent.edu/coursesaz/hi/.

Courses

• HI 60401 HEALTH INFORMATICS MANAGEMENT 3 Credit Hours
  Covers the areas encompassing health informatics management including the planning, selection, deployment, and management of electronic medical records (EMR), management decision-support and tracking systems (DSS), and other health information technologies (HIT).
• HI 60403 HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEMS 3 Credit Hours
  Introduction to information systems and their applications in healthcare used for managerial and clinical support. Study the fundamentals of information systems, including Electronic Medical Records (EMR), information security. Understand the role of standardized codes, vocabularies and terminologies used in health information systems. Analysis of management and enterprise systems, identify the key elements to manage information resources effectively and the trends affecting the development of health information systems and networks. Pre/corequisite: HI 60401.
• HI 60412 CLINICAL DECISION SUPPORT 3 Credit Hours
  Provides a practical survey of clinical decision support systems that collect clinical data and enable the transition to clinical knowledge in real world applications intended to improve quality and safety of patient care. Students become familiar with the basic requirements for clinical decision support systems and the challenges associated with the development and deployment of new applications within the healthcare setting. Prerequisite: HI 60401

Combined Bachelor’s/Master’s Degree Program
If students are interested in studying Health Informatics more closely with a goal of getting involved in the informatics initiatives in their workplaces, they may choose to start a graduate-level certificate (18 credit hours) or the Master of Science in Health Informatics (36 credit hours) while they are completing their BSN degrees through the university’s combined bachelor’s/master’s option. A combined bachelor’s/master’s degree program allows exceptional, well-prepared Kent State University undergraduate students early admission into a graduate program. Students in a combined degree program take graduate-level coursework as undergraduate students, thus enabling courses to be applied toward both degree programs.
Students in a combined degree program must meet the minimum requirements for each degree earned. Undergraduate requirements must be fully satisfied before a bachelor's degree will be awarded. Until that time, students continue to have undergraduate student status and are charged undergraduate tuition and fees. Following the awarding of the undergraduate degree, their status is changed to that of graduate student.

Is Health Informatics for you?

• If Nursing is your primary career and you would like to add a few courses in health informatics (HI) to enhance your skills and differentiate you from other job candidates, following the health informatics focus as part of your BSN by using the three HI courses (9 credits) listed above as substituting for other courses under the guidance of your advisor.
• If you are pursuing a Nursing career but would like an option to apply for and change your career path to more health informatics-focused positions, the Combined Bachelor’s/Graduate Certificate option is the choice for you. This option involves applying for the Online Graduate Certificate in Health Informatics (18 credits) and using 9 credits from the certificate towards your BSN degree.
• If you know that you would like to switch your career path to health informatics, the Combined Bachelor’s/Master’s Degree option is the choice for you. This option involves applying for the Master of Science in Health Informatics (36 credits) and sharing 9 credits between the BSN and MS by applying three graduate-level courses (9 credits) in HI to the BSN program requirements.

Interested students should contact their advisor to discuss which options would be the best fit for their career goals.

If a student chooses to follow the BSN/Graduate Certificate option, but later decides they would like to pursue the Master of Science, they will be allowed to use all 9 credits from the graduate certificate toward completion of the Master of Science, making it possible to earn the Master of Science for 27 additional credits.

Eligibility

To be eligible for admission to a combined degree program, undergraduate students must meet the following stipulations:

• Earn a minimum 60 credit hours (junior standing)
• Achieve a minimum 3.000 overall Kent State GPA (some combined degree programs may require a higher GPA)
• Complete a standard online graduate application, including paying the application fee
• Meet all admissions requirements for the master’s degree program (consult the University Catalog for specific requirements)
• Be admitted to the master’s degree program
• Submit the Combined Bachelor’s/Master’s Degree Form prior to the first semester of enrollment in the combined program

The full Combined Bachelor’s/Master’s Degree policy can be found in the catalog at http://catalog.kent.edu/academic-policies/combined-bachelors-masters-degree-program/.

Application Requirements

Because both programs require graduate-level courses from the same catalog, the application requirements are the same for both programs and standard for admission to graduate study.

• Achieve a minimum 3.000 overall Kent State GPA
• Official transcripts from all universities where you earned at least 8 credits.
• Online university application
  Applicants are required to create an account in the online application system, which allows them to save the application and track the progress of materials submitted via the application system. The online application will indicate "Kent Campus" for all Kent and online students. Degrees and certificates are offered through the College of Communication and Information.
• Three letters of recommendation
  References should be able to attest that you possess the ability and skills needed to succeed in graduate study. Generally, the best references are professors, but senior-level managers from your workplace can also serve well. Letters should include a signature and be submitted on the sender's company or organization letterhead. By submitting the email address and name of your reference in the application, you enable the application to send information about electronic submission of their reference letters. A form is also built into the reference submission system.
• Statement of purpose
  Please include a typed, double-spaced statement of no more than 1,000 words describing:
  • Why you are interested in the program
  • How your background experience and/or education has prepared you for the program
  • Your career goals
  • How the program will help actualize your professional objectives
• Resume or CV
• TOEFL or IELTS scores (international students)