Course Details

1. Explain the basic principles of computer science and computing systems.
2. Explain the principles of computer file handling (saving changing retrieving information).
3. Use of computers as health management support tools.
4. Identify the main standards, related to the communications and information exchange of medical systems, established worldwide and understand their basic principles.
5. Understand the use of computer systems in order to connect different medical systems and devices.
6. Use of actual health care support applications.

Introduction to Computer Science: Introduction to the basic principles of computer science and computer systems.

Data Representation: Analysis of the way data are represented/stored from a computer system.

Computer Software and Hardware: Analysis of the computer design principles, description of the main operating features of computer systems. Related to hardware and software components.

Computer File Systems: Description of the file system used by several operating systems. Description of the way of saving, changing and retrieving data.

Hospital Information Systems and Patient Medical Record: Description of the principles and components of a hospital information system. Detailed description of the main components used in hospitals. Description and analysis of the basic principles for patient medical records.

Standards and Protocols for Patient Medical Record: Description of the main standards and protocols used for coding and exchanging medical information. During this session standards/protocols like: ICD 10, SNOMED, HL7, DICOM are been examined.

• Medical Informatics”, J.H.van Bemmel, M.A. Musen, Springer, 2000.

• Medical Informatics: Computer Applications in Health Care and Biomedicine (Health Informatics)”, E. H. Shortliffe, L. E. Perreault, G. Wiederhold, L. M. Fagan, L. M. Fagan, Springer.
• Medical Decision Making; Sox, Blatt, Higgins, and Marton; Butterworth Publishers, Boston, 1988.
• Edward H. Shortliffe, Leslie E. Perreault, Medical Informatics: Computer Applications in Health Care. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1990.
• Prokosch HU, Dudeck J, eds. Hospital Information Systems: Design and Development Characteristics; Impact and Future Architecture. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1995.

The taught part of course is delivered to the students by means of lectures, conducted with the help of computer presentations. Lecture notes and presentations are available through the web for students to use in combination with the textbooks. Students are undertaking a project related to medical informatics. During this project they have to do bibliographical research and write an essay on the field they have selected.  

Practical sessions are held in computer laboratories where real applications like an Emergency health care support application and an electronic patient record system are tested by the students.