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Clinical and Health Informatics graduate program receives prestigious designation

A medical professional looks at a computer screen.

The University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Master of Science in Clinical and Health Informatics is now backed by a global advisor and thought leader, the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, Inc. (HIMSS). The new master’s program is part of HIMSS’ latest addition to its Approved Education Partner program.

“Graduating from a program that is a HIMSS Approved Education Partner will assure potential employers that the applicant has mastered the standard body of informatics knowledge and will set the learner up for success if they choose to obtain formal HIMSS certification in health informatics,” says Dr. Heidi Twedt, who served as Chief Medical Information officer (CMIO) for Sanford Health for 11 years prior to joining the Clinical and Health Informatics graduate program as Academic Director in December, 2020.

Regarded as a leader in health innovation, public policy, workforce development, research and analytics by health care leaders across the world, HIMSS is a mission-driven nonprofit that supports the transformation of the health ecosystem through information and technology. The prestigious HIMSS’ Approved Education Partner designation demonstrates that an organization meets or exceeds HIMSS’ quality educational programming standards and can deliver world-class, effective health information and technology training and education.

Bringing together expertise from across the university

The new Clinical and Health Informatics professional master’s degree builds on UW–Madison’s reputation as a global leader in academic medicine and science. The 30-credit online program offers course content focused on the changing health information and technology industry and is open to students from a wide spectrum of academic and professional backgrounds, including those with information technology or clinical experience.
The interdisciplinary master’s program is also part of the UW–Madison Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR), which brings together faculty expertise from areas across the university, including population health, industrial systems engineering, nursing, pharmacy, biomedical informatics and health care operations management. As a HIMSS Approved Education Partner, ICTR had to meet HIMSS’ rigorous standards for delivering world-class health care information and technology education.

“Clinical and health informatics is a large and diverse field of study. Attending a HIMSS certified program will assure the student that the program is presenting the most important core concepts throughout the program,” says Twedt.

The Clinical and Health Informatics program joins an exclusive group of HIMSS-approved education programs that prepare candidates for advanced knowledge in health information and technology or healthcare. HIMSS Approved Education Partners also prepare students to sit for the CAHIMS™ or CPHIMS™ certification — important certifications for health information and technology professionals to demonstrate expertise and experience.

For more information on the HIMSS certification and the Master of Science in Clinical and Health Informatics, contact Jack Champeau at jdchampeau@wisc.edu.