Bachelor of Science in Digital Health and Health Informatics
Uganda's health system now runs on district health information systems, electronic medical records, laboratory and logistics systems and a growing layer of clinical algorithms, and it is staffed at the technical level almost entirely by peo...
Employment thesis
What this programme is designed to produce
Forward publishes the destination of every programme before you enrol. If the thesis stops holding, the programme is reviewed and, where necessary, retired. Next review: 2031.
Roles
- Health informatics officer
- health information systems analyst
- clinical systems implementer
- interoperability and standards specialist
- health data analyst
- digital health product manager
- monitoring and evaluation specialist
- telemedicine service designer.
Employer types
- Ministry of Health and district health offices
- national and regional referral hospitals
- private hospital groups
- health information system implementers
- global health programmes and funders
- health insurers
- digital health start ups
- and diagnostics companies.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- High immediate demand, comparatively low capital intensity, and strong partnership and donor funded employment pipelines, with international remote demand for interoperability skills.
Compulsory · The Forward Core
How the Core works →Every Forward programme, including this one, carries the same five cross-cutting requirements. They are graded, not optional.
- AI Fluency
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Ethics and African Context
- Human-Advantage Skills
- Enterprise
Includes 12 months paid work-integrated learning
Am I eligible?
Check yourself against the published requirements
7 questions written specifically for Bachelor of Science in Digital Health and Health Informatics. Every answer is checked against a requirement Forward has published, and the result tells you which page that requirement comes from. Indicative only, the admissions office decides on your full file.
What is the highest qualification you hold or are completing?
Curriculum structure
The same degree, in both pathways
Every Forward programme is published in both pathways: Path One, the term plan of two six-month terms, and Path Two, the block sequence of twelve four-week blocks. Same competencies, same assessments, same award. Toggle to see this programme in each.
Path One term plan shown
Path One · The Term Model
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 101 | AI Fluency I: How Intelligent Systems Work Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 110 | Human Anatomy and Physiology for Health Informatics Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 111 | Foundations of Health Systems and Services Objective | 4 | 3-2-0 |
| HLB 112 | Programming and Data Handling for Health Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 113 | Health Information Systems and Records Both | 4 | 2-2-2 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 102 | Quantitative Reasoning and Evidence Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 130 | Epidemiology and Population Health Foundations Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 131 | Biostatistics I Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 132 | Clinical Terminologies, Coding and Health Data Standards Both | 4 | 2-2-2 |
| HLB 133 | Databases for Health Data Performance | 4 | 1-2-4 |
| COP 190 | Workplace Immersion (4 weeks, recess term) Performance | 0 | 0-0-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 201 | Ethics, Society and the African Context Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 210 | Clinical Decision Support and Health Algorithms Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 211 | Health Systems Interoperability Practicum Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| HLB 212 | Health Data Analytics and Visualisation Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 213 | Health Law, Ethics, Privacy and Consent Objective | 3 | 2-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 202 | Human Advantage: Argument, Writing and Teams Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| COP 290 | Co-operative Education Placement I (6 months) Performance | 10 | 0-0-0 |
| HLB 230 | Machine Learning for Clinical Data Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 231 | Facility Implementation Practicum Performance | 3 | 1-0-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 301 | AI Fluency II: Building, Evaluating and Auditing Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| COP 390 | Co-operative Education Placement II (6 months) Performance | 10 | 0-0-0 |
| HLB 310 | Telemedicine and Digital Service Design Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 311 | Health Economics, Financing and Insurance Systems Both | 3 | 1-2-2 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 302 | Enterprise, Employability and Financial Literacy Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| FDC 401 | AI Fluency III: Domain Deployment, Governance and Assurance Both | 3 | 1-2-0 |
| FDC 402 | Capability Portfolio and Day One Preparation Both | 3 | 1-2-0 |
| HLB 330 | Digital Health Capstone: Facility or Programme Deployment (client verified) Performance | 8 | 0-2-14 |
| HLB 331 | Health Supply Chain and Logistics Information Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-2 |
Total credit units: 132
Curriculum source
Forward University Curriculum Compendium
Assessment
Coursework + project + integrated exam
Work-integrated learning
12 months paid co-operative education
Your week at Forward
A typical week on Bachelor of Science in Digital Health and Health Informatics
Path One, the Term Model: your own pace across a six-month term, one live session a week, short flexible lessons, and assessment on demand.
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Curriculum explorer
Drill into the degree, step by step
Choose a study path, then a year, then a term or block, then a course. Credit totals add up as you go, and every course shows what comes before it and what it unlocks.
Step 1, choose a year
Step 2, choose a term
TERM 1 (SIX MONTHS) | FORMERLY YEAR 1, SEMESTER 1
Year 1 · this step is worth 22 CU
Cumulative
22
Programme total
132
22 CU of 132 CU completed by the end of this step (17%)
Step 3, choose a course
Pick a course to see the detail
Credits, assessment, prerequisites and what each course unlocks later.
The twelve Forward capabilities
What this programme develops in you
Every Forward degree develops the same twelve cross-cutting capabilities. The profile below is the level this programme is designed to develop and verify by graduation, on the four-level scale in Part B2 of the Curriculum Compendium. Every claim above Level 2 is verified by someone other than the teaching lecturer.
- C1Intelligent Systems Fluency CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C2Quantitative and Evidential ReasoningLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C3Ethical and Contextual JudgementLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C4Communication and PersuasionLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C5Disciplinary Mastery CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and CraftLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C7Problem Framing and Systems Thinking CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C8Collaboration and Multidisciplinary TeamingLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C9Enterprise, Value and Commercial LiteracyLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C10Professional Conduct and Workplace Performance CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C11Learning to Learn and Adaptive CapacityLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C12Stewardship and Public ContributionLevel 4 of 4, Leading
Critical capabilities for this programme: Intelligent Systems Fluency · Disciplinary Mastery · Problem Framing and Systems Thinking · Professional Conduct and Workplace Performance. A graduate cannot pass out of this programme below the stated level on any capability marked critical.
Programme Learning Outcomes
What you will be able to do
Each outcome is assessed, and each is tagged with the Forward capabilities it is verified against.
- PLO 1Model a clinical care pathway and identify where information systems help and where they obstruct.
- PLO 2Configure, implement and evaluate a health information system in a real facility.
- PLO 3Apply health data standards and achieve interoperability between real systems.
- PLO 4Analyse routine health data and produce a defensible service or epidemiological insight.
- PLO 5Evaluate a clinical algorithm for validity, bias, safety and fitness for the local population.
- PLO 6Apply patient confidentiality, data protection and health research ethics.
- PLO 7Design digital health services for low connectivity, low literacy and high workload settings.
Why this programme exists
Uganda's health system now runs on district health information systems, electronic medical records, laboratory and logistics systems and a growing layer of clinical algorithms, and it is staffed at the technical level almost entirely by peo...
Admission requirements
UACE with two principal passes from Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, Economics or Geography, plus UCE with five passes including Mathematics, Biology and English. Alternative pathways: Foundation Year, diploma entry with advanced standing, mature age entry and recognition of prior learning, all governed by Part A5 and Part G. Online applicants additionally complete the compulsory Digital Readiness orientation under Part D6.
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