Master in Health Informatics
A multidisciplinary programme equipping healthcare professionals with the skills to lead digital health transformation across East Africa.
Programme Overview
The use of modern Health Informatics systems in the healthcare sector has increased considerably in sub-Saharan Africa including the East African Region, with the aim of improving efficiency, cost-effectiveness, quality, safety, and equity, as well as resolving challenges associated with resource shortages in healthcare delivery.
While countries in sub-Saharan Africa have recorded an unprecedented rise in Health Informatics adoption, there has not been a parallel increase in the competences of end users. Limited knowledge and skills in the utilization and management of Health Informatics systems remains a key barrier to widespread use — alongside interoperability and cost-related challenges.
The MSc in Health Informatics — a multidisciplinary programme — was developed to strengthen the capacity of healthcare professionals by equipping them with the essential skills to operate within an ever-increasing ICT-integrated healthcare environment.
Programme Aims
The aims of the programme are to:
- Develop health informatics skills for professionals and managers in the healthcare sector with hands-on skills required to operate in increasingly sophisticated health information systems.
- Equip students with generic tools to respond to future developments in healthcare and information technology while grounding them in current initiatives in information policy, technology and management.
- Prepare professionals to respond to the changing dynamics of healthcare by providing skills to maximise the use of information technology.
- Produce professionals who can lead organisations in the application of information technology to improve healthcare delivery.
- Apply industrial practices, emerging technologies, state-of-the-art design techniques, software tools, and research methods to solving health informatics problems.
Graduate Attributes
The programme combines modules in computer science, health informatics, and health management. The core curriculum includes Health Information Systems, Information Storage, Data Retrieval, Management and Ethics, Research Methods and Outcomes Analysis.
Special areas of concentration include Electronic Healthcare Records, Health Information Systems, and Health Enterprise Architecture.
Programme Learning Outcomes
At the completion of this programme, students should be able to demonstrate knowledge on:
- Various data, networking, and enterprise architecture in healthcare systems
- Issues related to interoperability of technologies in healthcare systems
- Suitable IT solutions from major vendors of hardware, software, and telecommunications
- National and global architectural standards, regulations, and future developments in healthcare systems
- Health informatics applied to real health problems through research and innovation
- Policies for public health information systems in relation to institutional healthcare strategy
- Strategic use and implications of emerging computing and IT technologies applicable to health
- Tools and techniques of health project planning and management
- Healthcare data management
- The strategic use of information technology from an efficiency perspective at the enterprise level
- Fundamentals of Health Informatics Terminologies
- Architecture of information systems in healthcare; approaches and standards that interface and integrate components
Course Content
| Module Code | Module Title | Credits | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HIN6151 | Foundation of Health Informatics | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| HIN6152 | Healthcare Management, Organisation and Economics | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| HIN6153 | Knowledge Management in Healthcare Delivery | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| HIN6154 | Health Informatics Standards and Terminology | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| HIN6155 | Clinical Information Systems | 15 | 1 | 1 |
| HIN6156 | Ethical, Legal, Equity and Governance | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| Semester Total | 65 | |||
| Module Code | Module Title | Credits | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HIN6251 | Public Health Information Systems | 20 | 1 | 2 |
| HIN6252 | Health Information Security | 10 | 1 | 2 |
| HIN6253 | Research Methodology | 20 | 1 | 2 |
| HIN6254 | Project Management in Healthcare Delivery | 10 | 1 | 2 |
| Semester Total | 60 | |||
| Module Code | Module Title | Credits | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HIN6351 | Thesis: Proposal Writing | 10 | 2 | 3 |
| HIN6352 | Decision Support Systems and Clinical Workflow | 10 | 2 | 3 |
| HIN6353 | E-Health Enterprise Architecture | 10 | 2 | 3 |
| HIN6354 | Industrial Attachment | 15 | 2 | 3 |
| Semester Total | 55 | |||
| Module Code | Module Title | Credits | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HIN6451 | Thesis 2: Thesis Writing | 60 | 2 | 4 |
| Semester Total | 60 | |||
| TOTAL PROGRAMME CREDITS | 240 CREDITS | |||
Delivery mode: All modules will be delivered using face-to-face mode at UR-CEBE, Kigali Innovation City.
Programme Structure
Students are required to obtain 240 credits. The duration of the programme is two academic years (four semesters) for full-time study. No part-time option is currently available.
As specified in the Rwandan National Qualification Framework for Higher Education Institutions (NCHE, 2007), the academic year is divided into four semesters of 15 weeks each. Academic work and assessments are carried out within the month in which each module is completed.
Student Support
Each student will be allocated a supervisor. Students meet their supervisors regularly in face-to-face mode (local lecturers) and online (remote or international lecturers), at least once per week with record keeping as per UR-CMHS guidelines.
All students receive study materials, assignments, exercises, guidelines, templates and supplementary materials — also posted on the e-learning systems of UR-CEBE. Students are encouraged to interact with lecturers through communication tools embedded in the e-learning system.
The Health Informatics programme offers online support links for students who require additional prerequisite grounding in a specific domain.
A central component of competency-driven learning is high-quality mentoring. All students have both academic and field mentors. The academic mentor works closely with the field mentor to support students in their academic activities, monitor progress, and participate in assessment and thesis development.