As some degree programs ASU are downsizing, biomedical informatics, a field University officials say is growing, will expand to offer an undergraduate degree next fall.
The program will be the first undergraduate program of its kind in the U.S. Robert Greenes, chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics in the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering, said there is an urgent need to train people in biomedical informatics, which improves information technology, along with data management, in health care, research and medicine.
“We all looked around at this growing need and decided this was something we needed to do,” Greenes said. “It’s considered a priority area — it’s an area where there are jobs.”
Although budget cuts have affected many degree programs, the new program was spared.
“President [Michael] Crow himself was one of the early ones to promote the idea,” he said.
The actual definition of biomedical informatics is difficult since it has many applications in health-care and science, he said.
“It’s a field that develops ways of handling the information in biomedical science and health-care delivery,” Greenes said.
He said biomedical informatics can help hospitals, health-care centers, research centers and the health care industry to “develop efficient ways to acquire data, … improve problem solving and decision making.”
Because the program was announced only in early February, some students don’t know about the program or were cut off because of ASU’s limitations on all freshman applicants in March, he said.
But students can take an introductory course in biomedical informatics if they are interested, then switch their majors, Greenes said.
High demand for skilled graduates in the field is another plus of seeking the degree, he said.
“[Students] can get a job right out of undergraduate school,” he said. “People that do want to go on will have an advanced understanding of the field [through the undergraduate program].”
Pre-med students can also benefit from the program, because job options range from hospital information systems, health policy, public health departments, research institutes, universities and companies that have products in these areas, he said.
Sarah Martin, a graduate student in biomedical informatics, agrees the field is important.
“We are in desperate need of this,” Martin said.
She said her specialty is clinical informatics, and she works with electronic medical records and patient tracking systems, among other things.
Martin said she got her undergraduate degree in biochemistry.
“I’m pretty happy with the route I took, [but] I would’ve liked more computer science,” she said.
One area Martin said she is interested in is the idea that doctors in any country, like China, could access medical records from other countries.
“I’m very fascinated with the idea of global healthcare information exchange,” Martin said.
Although she said she is content with her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry, Martin thinks the new undergraduate program is a good investment.
“I think it’s a wonderful opportunity now that it’s available for those who might want to take advantage of it,” she said.
Reach the reporter at reweaver@asu.edu.
