Embracing the Exchange of Ideas in the Health Information Field – The Cengage Blog

Dana McWay is an expert at Health Care, Law and Ethics and the author of Cengage texts Today’s Health Information Management, 3e and Legal and Ethical Aspects of Health Information Management, 5e

Recently, I participated in the annual meeting of the National Advisory Committee in Health Informatics for DeVry University’s Health Informatics Program. This opportunity arose because of the established relationship between Cengage and DeVry. This provided a natural way for DeVry to seek additional professionals to serve on its Advisory Committee. The goal of this activity was to provide an opportunity for DeVry University faculty and administration to partner with professionals in the HI discipline to gather feedback about their program.

Discussing Health Information Topics

It was an exceptional experience to partner with DeVry. The entire group collaborated to provide insight, advice, and counsel on the technical skills needed for career opportunities in HI. Not just for today’s careers, but for future careers as well. As experts who are external to DeVry, we provided independent expertise in assessing the curriculum. We also shared ideas for experiential learning. We spoke to trends, economic forces, and cultural shifts that impact the HI profession. From there, we discussed how DeVry can prepare students who wish to enter the profession to meet these challenges. For example, we spoke to how students of today can learn to harness the health information found in wearable technologies to benefit delivery of healthcare in the future. The key benefit from this experience was the exchange of multiple viewpoints expressed by the many committee members.

Fortunately, I benefited from this exchange just as much as DeVry in terms of gaining insights from HI professionals. I learned a great deal about DeVry’s dedication to its students. I also gained insight into the thorough manner by which it evaluated its educational program. This is an experience well worth repeating.

See more of Dana McWay’s work in her textbook Today’s Health Information Management, 3e.