To advance the rapidly growing field of clinical informatics, and better support its practitioners’ career development with a centralized academic home, the Department of Medicine established the new Section of Applied Clinical Informatics on July 1, 2024.

While the new section is housed within the Division of General Internal Medicine, the discipline of clinical informatics crosses all medical specialties.

Faculty in the new section represent six divisions, eight University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health departments, and the UW School of Computer, Data and Information Science.

Transforming health care for patients and providers

Clinical informaticists draw from the broader fields of biomedical and health information technology to analyze, design, implement, and evaluate information and communication systems within the practice of medicine.

Their goal is to improve patient care, access to care, individual and population health outcomes, and the clinician-patient relationship.

This requires training in clinical informatics methodology and tools, and the ability to navigate the culture and complexities of the health care system.

“Everything we do is focused on transforming health care for patients and providers,” explained Heidi Twedt, MD, chief of the new section.

“Whether we are doctors, researchers, educators—or all three—we want to take better care of patients 'at scale’.”

Working together to advance the field

The new section is home to training programs at all levels of medical education: graduate and medical student courses, resident rotations, an ACGME-accredited fellowship, and a regional professional conference.

It also connects researchers who have common interests in information and communication systems. Current research work focuses on workflow and quality improvement, documentation and communication tools, clinician training, artificial intelligence, natural language processing and decision support.

And because clinical informatics is an academic discipline, section researchers also study the impact of applied informatics to evaluate performance and continue to deliver on the mission to improve health and healthcare.

“We are thrilled to launch this new section that enhances clinical informatics education and research at UW–Madison,” reflects Twedt. “This will not only benefit our faculty, but also contribute to our institution’s reputation as a leader and help us all take better care of our patients.”

Banner: Faculty in the new Section of Applied Clinical Informatics, including (center left) Peter Kleinschmidt, MD, associate professor, and (center right) Heidi Twedt, MD, in conversation with colleagues. Credit: Clint Thayer/Department of Medicine.