Overview

This Voyage prepares learners to analyze large healthcare databases with a focus on advanced applications with health insurance claims data. The Voyage is designed to be a STEM offering with the use of statistical programming languages with a primary focus on industry standard SAS. This Voyage is designed to appeal to learners with an interest in developing data science as a core skill and already have knowledge of some programming tools, and experience with data manipulation in Excel, SQL or Access.

Method

This Voyage has two pathways:

1. Express: The first 5 modules to develop and certify health analytic skill set.
2. Investigator: This version runs with all 7 Modules culminating the generation of investigation of the learner's interest culminating in a mentored a White Paper.

For both pathways the Voyage is primarily asynchronous video lecture to demonstrate health care analysis of a large synthetic national claims database. For the Investigator path, you will get a final certificate is obtained by working with an expert who will review your final project work.

For both paths in this Voyage, you will need to have your computer with fast internet access to complete this course. This will be a requirement. Furthermore, the Voyage works best if you use Google Chrome as your browser.\

Learners will be required to install statistical programming languages on their computer and download unique databases to complete their assignments. A set of custom databases will be available to the students that will require the student to program an answer and present the answer as the answer to the graded quiz. Most if not all learners will use unique databases to them and no group programming will be permitted.

Evaluation for Express Pathway

• Structure Analytic Queries: 80%
• Participation: 20% (Graded Quizzes)

Evaluation for Investigator Pathway

• Structure Analytic Queries: 35%
• DataWatch White Paper: 55%
• Participation: 10% (Graded Quizzes)

Structured Analytic Queries: Modules 2 through 5 consist of four rounds of structured analytic queries where the student must read in a unique database and generate tables from it to answer specific queries with respect to the data used. These queries will require the student to program in a statistical programming language such as SAS.

DataWatch White Paper: You will be expected to complete a white paper for this Voyage using the data provided to you. The intent of this requirement is to give you the opportunity to explore a specific health care market-oriented issue in which you are particularly interested. The model you should use is the journal Health Affairs Data Watch series. To close the Voyage you need to prepare a 7 slide (max) by Week 8 to accompany your white paper.

• The paper should be 2,000 words or less (but not less than 1,200 words).
• It should include no more than 4 figures or tables that you generate from your data
• The key finding of your white paper should be revealed within the first 150 words of your paper.
• Health Affairs Data Watch Paper Style Guide: http://www.healthaffairs.org/request-for-abstracts/2015_datawatch (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Deadlines: Once you start the Voyage, you have up to 3 months to complete it. The start of the Voyage commences with your first SAQ submission for Module 2. The Voyage is designed to be completed in 7 weeks.