The Regenstrief Institute and the IU Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI have established a collaborative program in public health informatics (PHI) to facilitate research, teaching and service. The program seeks to apply informatics methods to address population health challenges, including but not limited to the surveillance of infectious and chronic disease, decision support for public health leaders, and translation of evidence-based interventions into public health practice.
Public Health Informatics
What We Offer
The program includes academic and research opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and post-doctoral trainees to prepare them for successful careers in public health informatics.
Academics
Research Fellowships
Through a training grant from the U.S. National Library of Medicine, the Fairbanks School of Public Health, School of Medicine, and Regenstrief Institute offer pre-doctoral and post-doctoral research fellowships in public and population health informatics. These fellowships prepare trainees for research careers in academia, government, and industry where they can pursue designing, building, implementing and evaluating the next generation of public health informatics innovations. Pre-doctoral trainees conduct applied research in public health informatics while completing their PhD in epidemiology or health policy and management from the Fairbanks School of Public Health.
Fellows who already have a doctoral degree (e.g., PhD, MD, DrPH) will complete a customized plan of study in public health informatics while conducting applied informatics research with faculty mentors and community partners, including the Marion County Public Health Department.
Other Research Opportunities
Undergraduates as well as MPH and other graduate students also have opportunities to pursue applied research in public health informatics at the Fairbanks School of Public Health and Regenstrief Institute. Capstone, thesis, internship and other practicum projects can be completed under the supervision of faculty and staff mentors who help students learn both scientific and professional skills. These skills enhance resumes and prepare students to enter the professional informatics workforce in public health and healthcare organizations.
For more information about engaging in research in public health informatics, contact program staff listed below.
What We Do
Our faculty and students conduct exciting, cutting-edge research in many areas of public health informatics, including:
- health information exchange for population health
- health services research in VA and safety net facilities
- enhancing public health surveillance systems and methods
- community health assessment leveraging EHR systems
- integration of data as well as large-scale data management
“The unique partnership between IUPUI and the Regenstrief Institute allows me to conduct research with data from one of the nation's largest health information exchanges. With this data, I can conduct research that I would not be able to in another place in the nation. Here I can utilize billions of health data elements to create and assess methods of identifying and tracking diseases which affect the state of Indiana.”
– Yenling Ho, Epidemiology PhD Student, Pre-Doctoral Fellow
Examples of Our Research
Enhancing Collection & Management of Data for Public Health Surveillance
Notifiable disease reporting is an essential task in public health to track the spread of disease and prevent possible outbreaks. Regenstrief faculty work closely with clinicians, the IU School of Medicine and public health departments to enhance the process through partial automation and pre-populating reporting forms. This results in reporting that is easier, faster, and more complete.
Evaluating the Impact of Health Information Exchange on Population Health Outcomes
Health Information Exchange (HIE) consists of methods and tools that support population health in public health and healthcare systems. Regenstrief faculty advance methods to evaluate HIE implementation and outcomes. In a review of HIE evaluations, HIE was found to have generally beneficial effects, including positive outcomes like reducing repeat medical tests and health care costs.
| Examples of HIE Evaluation Findings |
| Reduction in repetition of medical procedures and repeat imaging |
| Identification of medication discrepancies |
| Savings related to reductions in ED use and readmission |
| Savings due to reductions in repeat imaging |
Join Us
The Public Health Informatics program at the Regenstrief Institute and Fairbanks School of Public Health is seeking partners, collaborators, and students for our exciting research and academic programs.
If you have an interest in public health informatics research, fellowship opportunities, or academic programs, please contact us: