Nursing Informatics
Program Description
The Nursing Informatics Sub-Specialty is a component of an overall program on informatics for evidence-based nursing practice funded by the Health Services Resources Administration (HRSA). The program goal is to promote evidence-based practice and reduce health disparities in underserved populations through the use of informatics-based approaches and technologies by nurse practitioners. The Nursing Informatics Sub-Specialty is designed to prepare nurse practitioners with the informatics knowledge and skills most relevant to evidence-based practice in underserved populations (e.g., using the World Wide Web to tailor diabetic teaching for a Hispanic youth, decision analytic methods for assessing culturally appropriate patient preferences, retrieving context-specific guidelines). In addition to designated informatics coursework, students will use information technology, including handheld computers, during their clinical practice experiences.
This sub-specialty requires a minimum of three semesters, which includes both a nursing informatics residency and a clinical specialty residency. Students must complete 12 credits to be eligible to take the American Nurses Association Informatics Nurse Certification exam.
Admission
Please contact the Office of Student Services for details regarding admission and financial aid packages.
Admission criteria for this sub-specialty include:
- Interview with program director: Suzanne Bakken, RN, DNSc, FAAN Alumni Professor of Nursing and Medical Informatics
- Currently enrolled in NP specialty at Columbia University School of Nursing
- Personal goal statement that is congruent with program goals (two pages, double-spaced, 12 pt. font)
- Resume or Curriculum Vitae
Curriculum
| Courses | Credits |
| Informatics for Evidence-Based Practice | 3 |
| Interactive Health Communication | 3 |
| Nursing Informatics Seminar | 3 |
| Nursing Informatics Residency | 2 |
| Medical Informatics or Nursing Informatics Elective* | 3 |
| Total Credits | 14 |
| * Electives include: | |
| Databases and Data Mining | 3 |
| Project Management | 3 |
| Introduction to Computer Applications in Heath and Biomedicine | 3 |
| Decision Support Systems in Health Care and Biomedicine | 3 |
| Representation and Coding of Medical Data | 3 |
| User Interfaces in Medicine | 3 |
| Medical Language Processing | 3 |
| Medical Knowledge Structures | 3 |
| Evaluation Methods in Medical Informatics | 3 |
| Economics of Informatics: Cost and Investment Issues in Healthcare | 3 |
| Information Technology | 3 |
School of Nursing
The School of Nursing has paved the way for professional nursing since 1892 and continues to lead the field as the foremost institution for advanced practice nursing.
The School of Nursing is a designated World Health Organization Collaborating Center for International Nursing Development in Advanced Practice. With urban clinical sites, expert faculty practitioners, cutting edge research, and the strength of the Columbia name and reputation, the School of Nursing produces graduates who possess the skills necessary to bring advanced practice nursing into the new millennium. As medical advances offer a cascade of new and useful therapies, the need for more health care providers will increase exponentially. Our country will face many health care challenges in the next 20 years, and nurse practitioners are essential to providing access to quality primary care.
Founded in 1892 as Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing, the School became part of Columbia University in 1937 and began offering the baccalaureate degree. It is one of the oldest schools of nursing in the US. In 1956, it became the first nursing program in the country to award a master’s degree in a clinical nursing specialty. In 1999, the School granted its first doctoral degree. More than 9,000 nurses have graduated since the School opened.
The School shares the Columbia University Health Sciences Campus with the Mailman School of Public Health, the School of Dental and Oral Surgery, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons. Each of these schools adds to the richness and diversity of the educational experience of students and faculty.
School of Nursing faculty have substantial experience in curriculum, instructional design, and research. They maintain expertise in their areas of teaching responsibility through participation at local, regional, and national conferences, involvement in scholarly presentations and publications, and faculty practice.
Columbia University School of Nursing is distinguished by the clinical excellence of its programs and graduates. Columbia nurses are making crucial contributions and improving the health of individuals wherever they practice.
The above information is current as of 06/06 and is subject to change at any time.