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At the University of Illinois at Chicago’s acclaimed College of Applied Health Sciences, the future of health data is improving patient outcomes today.

Data is the future of everything, including health care — in fact, it’s predicted that health care will be impacted by the rising volume of data more than other industries.

“Consumer informatics is a hot area right now, and it’s going to be even more intense in five or 10 years,” says Anthony Faiola, Ph.D., head of the Department of Biomedical and Health Information Sciences at the UIC College of Applied Health Sciences. The college is a component of UI Health, UIC’s academic health enterprise, which consists of seven health sciences colleges and the University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics. The college’s health informatics master’s program — the world’s first accredited online program of its kind — is ranked third in the country. Its Ph.D. program in biomedical and health informatics, is the first of its kind in Illinois.

Influencing the Industry

Faiola is happy to brag about the scope of research within the department. “Our faculty are developing mobile health technologies for the self-management of chronic diseases; improving patient safety through communication and care coordination; and advancing our understanding of the intersections between health informatics and health data, and data visualization and health care design. Some are conducting hardcore health data analytics — data simplification to improve clinical outcomes.”

The program is incredibly influential. “The big impact that we’re having right now is in education,” says Faiola. “We are among the largest health informatics programs in the country.”

In addition to transforming the present and future of health care, the department is preparing students for future success. “After completing the program, I was promoted to vice president of IT at my current employer,” says Pam Landis, a 2012 master’s graduate. 

There’s no arguing with the data. “Established over 15 years ago, we’ve produced many health informatics professionals who are having a significant impact on the health care industry,” says Faiola.

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