5 Essential Healthcare Data Skills You’ll Learn in UIC’s Online Health Informatics Course

In today’s digital health landscape, healthcare data is critical in shaping decisions that impact patients, populations, and healthcare systems. That’s why BHIS 437: Healthcare Data is a core course in the Online Master of Science in Health Informatics (MSHI) program at the University of Illinois, Chicago (UIC).

The MSHI program is designed to teach students how to transform raw health data into actionable insights using digital tools, data science, and leadership practices. We interviewed Professor Margaret Czart, an alumnus of UIC and a longtime faculty member, about her course, BHIS 437: Healthcare Data, and the top five skills students gain from it. Here’s what she shared:

1. Understanding the Healthcare Data Collection Process

To work effectively in healthcare, professionals must understand how data collecting works using health information technologies. In BHIS 437, students learn how different types of health technology are used to gather critical pieces of health information that support patient care and system-wide decision-making, and how health information is collected and analyzed to improve the quality of care.

Assignments are based on real-world scenarios and data query tools that allow students to analyze how and why specific data is collected and the impact various diseases have on healthcare outcomes.

2. Supplementing Quantitative Data with Qualitative Insights

One of the more advanced skills students develop is combining qualitative and quantitative data to identify patterns and trends, especially when analyzing specific populations or public health concerns.

This dual focus helps students develop a more complete picture of healthcare challenges and makes their data analysis more meaningful and applicable in real-world settings.

3. Managing and Analyzing Health Data

Throughout the course, students complete assignments that involve hands-on data analysis in healthcare. These projects build essential skills in managing and interpreting data sets.

Students learn how to identify gaps or inconsistencies and make evidence-based recommendations. These exercises mirror the challenges professionals face in healthcare data management and prepare students for future data handling and decision-making roles.

4. Communicating Health Data Effectively

Being able to analyze data is only part of the equation. Communicating it clearly to others is just as important. In BHIS 437, students practice translating data findings into insights they can share with healthcare teams, administrators, and public health leaders.

Through written recommendations and presentations, students develop professional communication skills essential for most health informatics jobs.

5. Thinking Critically and Making Informed Recommendations

All assignments in BHIS 437 are built around case scenarios that require students to think critically and propose well-supported solutions.

By choosing health topics they’re personally interested in, students engage more deeply with the material and build confidence in applying what they’ve learned. The course emphasizes critical thinking over perfection and encourages students to bring new perspectives regardless of their experience level working in healthcare.