Educational Opportunities

• Certificate in Medical Informatics, Online
• Workshops and Short Courses

Electronic Resources

• UWF's Medical Informatics Resource Site
• Also explore: Medscape and Medline Plus

eTextbook

Text for sale! - Proceeds generated from the text, Medical Informatics: Practical Guide for the Healthcare Professional 2008 (available in softback or as an eTextbook), by UWF medical informatics faculty member Robert Hoyt with Associate Editors Melanie Sutton and Ann Yoshihashi, are donated to the Medical Informatics Program at the University of West Florida, so order a hardcopy or download the electronic version now, and enjoy!

Professional Societies

• American Medical Informatics Association
• Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society

Job Opportunities

• Start with meditjobs.com

A Few Hands-On Activities...

• Using an Online Drug Reference
  1. Create an account on Epocrates Online and log in.
  2. Enter several different drugs and examine the information provided.
  3. Next, examine two different drugs with the multi-check feature.
  4. Finally, answer this question: How long does it takes you to use this tool to research the drugs ramipril and xopenex? Report the leading side effects and whether these drugs are safe during pregnancy.
• Exploring Online Resources
  1. Visit the links provided above under the heading "Electronic Resources".
  2. What information does each site provide that will be useful in your career?
  3. What site provides useful information you might pass along to patients?
• Using Excel for Disease Management
  1. Download HbA1C-data.xls spreadsheet.
  2. Consider this case study question:
     Assume you have taken on the role of a disease management nurse in Pensacola, FL (or your local community). Part of your duties include evaluating an outlying clinic in another area of your region (e.g., Fort Walton Beach), to determine if diabetic care is up to par. You are provided with the Excel data file called HbA1C-data.xls. You are expected to examine the column for Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) test results and provide analysis on how well your facility overall and individual physicians are performing with patient care based on this test result value over the set of patients provided. More specifically, you have been tasked to answer the following questions:
     • How would you rate this facility? What is the basis for your answer?
     • Is there evidence to support a conclusion of subpar care at this facility?
     • How would you rate the physicians within this facility? What is the basis for your answser?
     • Is there evidence to support a conclusion of subpar care by specific physicians at this facility?
     • What action plan would you implement to address your conclusions?
  3. Begin by sorting the data in different ways.
  4. Next, use the AVERAGE, MIN, and MAX functions to perform analysis on the data.
  5. Use the Chart Wizard in Excel to create a column chart to graphically summarize the initial analysis you have done.
  6. Compare your results to those provided in: HbA1C-data-New.xls
  7. How would you present the analysis to invoke organizational action (e.g., utilizing additional tools such as Word, PowerPoint, or Paint)?
• Thought Question: Overcoming Barriers to Technology
  • What barriers to incorporating technology exist within your organization (or the organization to envsion working for), and how might you help facilitate overcoming these obstacles?

We'd Like to Hear from You

For more information about informatics at UWF or the Certificate in Medical Informatics program, please contact Dr. Melanie A. Sutton at 850.474.2650 or msutton@uwf.edu.