2017/18 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

YCHI5035M Clinical Knowledge Management and Decision Support Systems

15 creditsClass Size: 40

Module manager: Carol Wilson
Email: c.j.wilson@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: 1 Jan to 31 Jan (1mth) View Timetable

Year running 2017/18

Pre-requisite qualifications

Academic:
Acceptance onto the Health Informatics or other relevant University of Leeds master's programme. Most students are expected to have an upper second-class honours degree. Applicants with other qualifications may be accepted if they can demonstrate suitable professional experience.
English language:
- IELTS - overall score of 6.5 with no element less than 6.0
- TOEFL iBT - overall score of 92, with reading element no less than 21, speaking element no less than 23, listening element no less than 21, writing element no less than 22

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

The module will examine a key element of modern healthcare and health informatics: the conjunction of clinical knowledge and patient data for the purpose of informing clinical decisions.The module will show how the concept of knowledge management is understood and applied in healthcare. Within this context it will then focus on knowledge sources, the methods and strategies used by clinicians, patients and the public to access this knowledge for decision making, and the development, use and evaluation of knowledge management and decision support systems.

Objectives

The purpose of the module is to provide students with a solid grounding in:
- The path from new scientific knowledge to clinical practice, health guidance and self-care
- The role of health informatics in knowledge management and access
- Core principles in creation, deployment and evaluation of decision support systems and tools

Learning outcomes
On completion of the module students should be able to:
- Critically assess and compare clinical knowledge management methods and resources; propose future models; justify these proposals in the context of advances in health informatics
- Summarise the diverse types of current and future clinical knowledge and their sources within and outside medicine (including clinical trial, epidemiologic, phenomic, genomic, imaging, social care); apply appropriate criteria for evaluating and grading clinical knowledge sources
- Analyse the ways that knowledge is translated into guidelines and other decision support tools, and the role (actual and potential) of health informatics in this process
- Demonstrate understanding of the principles of clinical test interpretation methods and the ability to apply them appropriately in calculations
- Critically assess the different types of clinical decision support systems (algorithm type, delivery mode): their specific uses, strengths and weaknesses
- Analyse and evaluate the performance of decision support tools in clinical settings using qualitative and quantitative methods, including the application of standard performance measures, and use these skills to contribute to procurement decisions about decision support tools and systems

Skills outcomes
- Critically review published health informatics research, especially in knowledge management and decision support
- Apply numerical techniques, for example in test performance measurement, to real world decision making in health informatics
- Determine user and technical requirements for decision support tools; critically assess the results of options appraisals in relation to these requirements
- Identify and assess the implications of quality failures and deficiencies in decision support tools

Syllabus

The following topics will be covered:
Clinical knowledge management:
- Clinical questions; categories, sources and use of clinical knowledge
- Methods of communicating and accessing knowledge, including comparison and assessment of these methods, current inadequacies, and consequent deficiencies in clinical decision making
- Changes in knowledge management methods dependent on informatics technology
Evidence-based healthcare:
- Knowledge sources, including methods of evaluation
- Comparison of study results presentation methods, and their effects on decisions
- The path from new scientific knowledge to clinical practice, health guidance and self-care; the role of health informatics systems at each stage
- Medical test interpretation methods; test evaluation metrics;
- Development, assessment and use of evidence-based practice guidelines
Clinical decision support systems:
- Overview of types of algorithm and methods of deployment; current examples
- Problems and solutions in deployment and use
- Evaluation, safety and regulation
- Economic aspects
Possible future developments in clinical knowledge management and decision support

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Group learning	2	4.00	8.00
Lecture	12	1.00	12.00
Practical	3	2.00	6.00
Seminar	4	1.00	4.00
Tutorial	2	2.00	4.00
Private study hours			116.00
Total Contact hours			34.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			150.00

Private study

Module pre-reading and directed exercises (12 hours):
- Introduction to knowledge management resources, clinical evidence sources, decision support principles and systems
- Background reading for group project
During contact week (8 hours):
- Directed reading and exercises
- Literature review for group project
After contact week (96 hours):
- Formative assessment exercises
- Summative assessment

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

- Group feedback on directed exercises during the contact week
- Seminar discussions and short exercises
- A formative peer and tutor assessed group presentation on the final day of the contact week, with immediate feedback
- A formative assignment to be completed following the contact week, with individual feedback before coursework due

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Assignment	A single assignment, comprising six short problem-solving tasks requiring answers of ~ 500 words each (or equivalent, for problems with a numerical component)	100.00
Presentation	A formative peer and tutor assessed group presentation on the final day of the contact week, with immediate feedback	0.00
Online Assessment	Online multiple choice test. A formative assignment to be completed following the contact week, with individual feedback before coursework due	0.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

As the contact week dates are not known yet, week numbers for coursework setting and submission cannot be stated. These dates will be included in the module handbook.

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 27/03/2017

Disclaimer

Browse Other Catalogues

• Undergraduate module catalogue
• Taught Postgraduate module catalogue
• Undergraduate programme catalogue
• Taught Postgraduate programme catalogue

Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team.PROD