Master of Medical Sciences (MMSc) in Biomedical Informatics Harvard Medical School Program Director: Alexa T. McCray, PhD Introduction

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Master of Medical Sciences (MMSc) in Biomedical Informatics

Harvard Medical School

Program Director: Alexa T. McCray, PhD

Introduction

Biomedical Informatics studies and pursues the effective uses of biomedical data, information, and knowledge for scientific inquiry, problem solving and decision-making, motivated by efforts to improve human health.1 The field is interdisciplinary, drawing on traditional biomedical disciplines, as well as the science and technology of computing, biostatistics, information science, and health care policy. There is a common core of knowledge, skills, and experiences that all trainees need to equip them to engage in the field.

Program Description

The MMSc in Biomedical Informatics (BMI) is a two-year program composed of academic training, mentored research training and experience, and other career-enhancing activities. Each student chooses from one of four possible tracks:

- Bioinformatics - Clinical Informatics - Imaging Informatics

- Population Health Informatics

Students receive didactic training in biomedical informatics and conduct their mentored research in an HMS-based laboratory. All students participate in a longitudinal seminar throughout the two-year program. A publicly defended thesis is a requirement for graduation.

Requirements2

• Students take courses throughout the two-year period. Specific requirements are described in a subsequent section.

o Students will be formally evaluated in each course, through oral and written work. o Students may choose courses at Harvard3 with the guidance and permission of the

Program, Track, and Course Directors.

• No later than the beginning of the second semester of study, each student chooses from one of four possible tracks:

o Clinical Informatics (Track Director: Charles Safran, MD)

o Population Health Informatics (Track Director: Kenneth Mandl, MD, MPH) o Imaging Informatics (Track Director: Ramin Khorasani, MD)

o Bioinformatics (Track Director: Peter Tonellato, PhD)

• Students conduct mentored research in their home laboratories. Each student will also have an HMS faculty academic advisor, separate from the research mentor.

• A written thesis and an oral presentation and defense of the thesis are required. Specific requirements are described in a subsequent section.

1_{American Medical Informatics Association. http://www.amia.org}

2_{Students are responsible for ensuring that they meet all degree requirements and are advised to verify with the Program Manager before the} beginning of each semester that they have met all current requirements.

3_{One HSPH 2.5 credit course = 2 HMS credits; one HSPH 5 credit course = 4 HMS credits; One HBS 3 credit course = 2 HMS credits; one FAS} half course (1 semester) = 4 HMS credits. The HSPH one summer Clinical Effectiveness course = 8 HMS credits. (This course requires additional HSPH tuition.)

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Course Requirements

Table 1 outlines the course requirements for the MMSc program in Biomedical Informatics4.

Course Name Weeks Classroom Hours

per Week

HMS Credits

Year 1

Fall

BMI701: Introduction to Biomedical Informatics I

14 3 4

BMI Program Requirement 14 3 4

BMI731: Informatics Research Seminar 7 2 1

BMI711: Mentored Research I 14 - 8

Spring

BMI702: Introduction to Biomedical Informatics II

14 3 4

BMI Track Requirement: BMI714, BMI716, BMI720, or BMI726

14 2 4

BMI712: Mentored Research II 14 - 8

Year 2

Fall

Track Elective 14 3 4

BMI723: Mentored Thesis Research 14 - 12

Spring

BMI724: Mentored Thesis Research 14 - 12

Total HMS Credits 64

Table 1. Course requirements for Harvard Medical School MMSc in Biomedical Informatics

During the first year, students take the two-semester introductory course, one additional course each semester (the spring course is an intensive introduction to the student’s chosen track), and the longitudinal research seminar. Mentored research is conducted in the student’s home laboratory. To receive credit for the mentored research component, students must submit a 3-5 page paper describing their research work to the Program Director at the end of each semester.

During the second year, students take one additional course, chosen in consultation with the Track Director and the Program Director, conduct thesis research, and participate in the longitudinal research seminar.

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Thesis Requirements

• Thesis Schedule

o The 2014-2015 schedule is shown below. Submit, in writing, names and contact information for

thesis committee members to the Program Director. Friday, September 26, 2014 by 5:00 PM First Committee Meeting (to be scheduled by program) October 1, 2014 – November 3, 2014 Submit approved written thesis proposal to the Program

Director and copy your committee. Friday, November 7, 2014 by 5:00 PM Second Committee Meeting (to be scheduled by

program) December 1, 2014 – December 19, 2014

Submit approved thesis progress report to the Program

Director and copy your committee. Monday, January 26, 2015 by 5:00 PM Third Committee Meeting (to be scheduled by program) February 23, 2015 – March 13, 2015 Track Director Meeting (to be scheduled by program) March 13, 2015 – April 3, 2015 Submit one electronic copy and one paper copy of

approved completed thesis to the Program Director and

copy your committee. Friday, April 17, 2015 by 5:00 PM

Submit proof of submission of paper to journal to the

Program Director and copy your committee. Wednesday, May 13, 2015 by 5 PM

Public oral defense. Thursday, May 14, 2015

Submit final electronic copy of completed thesis with signed approval cover sheet to the Program Director and

copy your committee. Wednesday, May 20, 2015 by 5:00 PM

Graduation Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Table 2. 2014-2015 Thesis Schedule • Thesis Committee

o The student must select a thesis committee. There must be three members of the

committee, including at least one external member of the committee, i.e., someone who is not in the student’s home laboratory and also not directly involved in the student’s research.

o The names and contact information for thesis committee members must be submitted to the Program Director.

• Thesis Proposal

o The student must prepare a thesis proposal that is reviewed and approved by the thesis committee. The student must submit the committee-approved thesis proposal to the Program Director.

• Thesis Progress Report

o The student must prepare a thesis progress report that is reviewed and approved by the thesis committee. The student must submit the committee-approved thesis progress report to the Program Director.

• Completed Written Thesis

o The thesis committee must approve the completed written thesis in advance of the public oral defense of the thesis. The completed approved thesis must be submitted to the Program Director.

o The thesis must be submitted to a relevant journal during the second year of the program and before the thesis defense.

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• Public Oral Defense

o The student must publicly defend the thesis.

o All MMSc students (both first and second year) are expected to attend the public oral defense of their fellow students.

• Thesis Proposal Format

o The proposal should be approximately 3 pages and include the following sections:  Objectives of the research

 Significance of the project  Approach and methods  Timeline

 Proof of a submitted IRB proposal, if relevant. Please include the institute where it was submitted and any policies and dates that may need attention.

• Thesis Format

o The completed thesis should be consistent with the requirements of the specific journal to which it has been submitted and will generally include the following sections:

 Purpose  Methods  Results  Discussion  References  Acknowledgments • Thesis Defense

o Guidelines for the oral defense will be distributed to students after the spring break of the second year.

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BMI Faculty Program Director Alexa T. McCray, PhD Program Faculty Katherine Andriole, PhD David Bates, MD John Brownstein, PhD Aurel Cami, PhD Henry Chueh, MD Henry Feldman, MD Blanca Himes, PhD Jayashree Kalpathy-Cramer, PhD Peter Kharchenko, PhD Ramin Khorasani, MD Isaac Kohane, MD, PhD William Lester, MD Kenneth Mandl, MD David Margulies, MD Lawrence Nathanson, MD Alexa T. McCray, PhD Peter Park, PhD Rachel Ramoni, DDS Ben Reis, PhD Charles Safran, MD Peter Szolovits, PhD Peter Tonellato, PhD Adam Wright, PhD

Affiliated Research Laboratories:

Center for Biomedical Informatics (Harvard Medical School)

Center for Clinical and Quality Analysis (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) Center for Evidence Based Imaging (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) Children’s Hospital Informatics Program (Children’s Hospital Boston) Division of Clinical Informatics (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center) Laboratory of Computer Science (Massachusetts General Hospital)

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Program Website

The Program Website, which includes application procedures for the MMSc in Biomedical Informatics is: http://informaticstraining.hms.harvard.edu/.

Contact Information

The Program Office for the MMSc in Biomedical Informatics is located in the Center for Biomedical Informatics at Harvard Medical School. The Program Manager can be reached as follows:

Katherine Flannery Program Manager

MMSc in Biomedical Informatics Center for Biomedical Informatics Harvard Medical School

Email: katherine_flannery@hms.harvard.edu Telephone: 617.432.7294