Big data is transforming the health care industry relative to improving quality of care and reducing costs--key objectives for most organizations. Employers are desperately searching for professionals who have the ability to extract, analyze, and interpret data from patient health records, insurance claims, financial records, and more to tell a compelling and actionable story using health care data analytics. The course begins with a study of key components of the U.S. healthcare system as they relate to data and analytics. While we will be looking through a U.S. lens, the topics will be familiar to global learners, who will be invited to compare/contrast with their country's system.

With that essential industry context, we'll explore the role of health informatics and health information technology in evidence-based medicine, population health, clinical process improvement, and consumer health. Using that as a foundation, we'll outline the components of a successful data analytics program in health care, establishing a "virtuous cycle" of data quality and standardization required for clinical improvement and innovation. The course culminates in a study of how visualizations harness data to tell a powerful, actionable story. We'll build an awareness of visualization tools and their features, as well as gain familiarity with various analytic tools.