Durham University
Programme and Module Handbook

Postgraduate Programme and Module Handbook 2021-2022 (archived)

Module SOCI59715: Health Informatics and Clinical Intelligence

Department: Sociology

SOCI59715: Health Informatics and Clinical Intelligence

Type Tied Level 5 Credits 15 Availability Available in 2021/22
Tied to G5P323

Prerequisites

  • None

Corequisites

  • None

Excluded Combination of Modules

  • None

Aims

  • To introduce the concepts and skills for generating health and medical evidence from electronic medical/health records

Content

  • Fundamentals of health informatics
  • Electronic health/medical records
  • Data linkage
  • Clinical intelligence

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge:
  • By the end of the module students will have a working knowledge and understanding of concepts in the following areas:
  • Understand the purpose and role of health informatics
  • Appreciate the different types of data in care delivery and public health
  • Extract relevant data from electronic health/medical records
  • Knowledge of data linkage and the potential bias
  • Generate medical and health evidence to support care delivery or public health
Subject-specific Skills:
  • Students will have necessary skills to work with electronic health/medical records to support care delivery of public health.
Key Skills:
  • Students will have skills in the following areas:
  • data extraction and quality assessment from electronic health/medical records,
  • data linkage skills,
  • critical and analytical thinking,
  • statistical modelling, and
  • computer skills.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

  • Lectures will usually be delivered synchronously, either online or face-to-face, and will demonstrate the methodological and conceptual foundations for health informatics. Lectures will be divided into four blocks of four lectures each, according to the classification given under the “Content” item, and other modes of teaching will be aligned accordingly.
  • Workshops describe concepts and their application to case studies, concretize understanding via visualisation of data from complex health problems, as well as providing feedback and encouraging active engagement via discussion and groupwork.
  • Surgeries give students the chance to pose personalized questions on both theory and practice.
  • Summative assignments are designed to test the acquisition and articulation of knowledge and critical understanding, and skills of implementation, interpretation and communication of information and evidence from electronic health and medical records.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Activity Number Frequency Duration Total/Hours
Lectures 16 4 per week (Term 2, weeks 16-19) 1 hour 16
Workshops (a combination of live lectures, computer practicals, problem classes, and tutorials) 8 2 per week (Term 2, weeks 16-19) 2 hours 16
Surgeries 8 2 per week (Term 2, weeks 17-20) 1 hour 8
Preparation, exercises and reading 110
Total 150

Summative Assessment

Component: Coursework Component Weighting: 100%
Element Length / duration Element Weighting Resit Opportunity
Assignment 1 (Report, essay, or task-based style) 25%
Assignment 2 (Report, essay, or task-based style) 25%
Assignment 3 (Report, essay, or task-based style) 25%
Assignment 4 (Report, essay, or task-based style) 25%

Formative Assessment:

<enter text as appropriate for the module>


Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University