What is the Best Minor to Complement my Health Informatics Degree?

Health Informatics-The Basics

Although broadly defined, health informatics is basically a field that exists as the intersection between health care, computer science, and information science. (Health informatics is often referred to as health care informatics, health information systems, medical informatics, healthcare informatics, biomedical informatics, or clinical informatics.) Health informatics is primarily concerned with the devices, methods, and resources that are necessary for the optimization of information use within the fields of health and biomedicine. Some of the tools that individuals who operate within the field of health informatics make use of include clinical guidelines, computers, information and communication systems, and formal medical terminologies.

Good Minors For Health Informatics Degrees

If you are attempting to decide which minor would best complement your health informatics degree, you should know that obtaining an answer to this question requires that you have an understanding of the vocational path you plan to pursue following your acquisition of the degree. Answering this question can be difficult given that health informatics can be applied to a plethora of different career fields (including but not limited to clinical care, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, occupational therapy, public health, biomedical research, alternative medicine, and physical therapy.) Here are just two of the minors that can be advantageous for individuals interested in pursuing a career in health informatics:

1. Information Systems

Individuals who want to work within the field of health informatics should know that obtaining a minor in information systems can be helpful since the field is primarily concerned with the use of computers and other forms of technology. One job in which a minor in information systems could be very useful would be that of a medical records and health information technician. Individuals who work as medical records and health information technicians are responsible for organizing and managing health information data. In general, their work is primarily about ensuring the accuracy, quality, security, and accessibility of health information data in both electronic and paper systems. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that individuals who work as medical records and health information technicians can expect to earn about $34,160.

2. Management

Individuals who opt to pursue a career in the field of health informatics can benefit from obtaining a minor in management. This is the case for several reasons, including the fact that the field often necessitates the acquisition and enhancement of management skills such as organization, strategic plan implementation, and effective communication. Each of these skills are generally integral to basic management coursework. One job position that individuals with a minor in management can do well in is that of a medical and health service managers. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, medical and health services managers can expect to earn about $88,580 per year.

Conclusion

If you are thinking about pursuing a career in the field of health informatics, you should know that doing so can be personally and professionally profitable. And by deciding exactly which vocational path you want to follow, you can answer the important question “What is the best minor to complement my health informatics degree?”