Before getting her postgraduate degree, Shelley Behen never imagined she could land her dream job: senior business analyst for CSIRO, working with the FHIR Accelerator team in the Australian e-Health Research Centre (AEHRC).
She believes she got the confidence to apply for the role thanks to her 2-year immersion in UQ’s Graduate Certificate in Clinical Informatics and Digital Health (GCCIDH).
Shelley had reached a point in her career where she wanted to further her clinical informatics and digital health skills. She thought the UQ graduate certificate would be the ideal program to facilitate this – and she was right.
“I looked around at all the courses on offer, and when I saw the graduate certificate at UQ was led by Clair Sullivan and Andrew Burton-Jones, I knew it was for me,” says Shelley.
“They are recognised as industry leaders, and I learnt so much from them.”
She also felt the GCCIDH program was a genuinely cutting-edge program. For example, Shelley’s cohort started their data analytics course just as ChatGPT was launched, and the course content was quickly adjusted to cover it.
I could see the digital health landscape was changing fast, and I wanted to be part of that change.
A diverse cohort of peers
Shelley was one of the first 14 students of the inaugural program who completed their studies in November 2023. Her fellow students came from a variety of backgrounds, ranging from clinical roles to IT to clinical informatics.
“Our final group assignment on developing a digital health strategy was a great experience,” she says.
“Working with people from different perspectives brought it all together for me.”
Shelley also believes one of her most valuable learnings was in the evaluation of digital health systems.
“If you implement a digital health system, learning the correct way to evaluate it is essential,” she says.
“You need to be able to show how the system has added value, how you can get the most out of it, and make sure that it's delivering value for stakeholders.”
Shelley’s career since graduating
Shelley has spent more than 26 years in the health industry and has now secured her position as senior business analyst at CSIRO’s Sparked AU. This role includes working closely with the Australian e-Health Research Centre team (along with other collaborators and stakeholders) in the creation, development, management and support of open data exchange standards and capabilities to meet the current and future needs of Australia’s health system.
“I started off my career as a pharmacy technician, and when I went back to university the first time, I chose to study pharmacy,” says Shelley.
“It was at the same time I got my first application specialist job and I realised I wanted to work in technology, so I switched from pharmacy to IT – and the rest is history.”
UQ’s Graduate Certificate in Clinical Informatics and Digital Health
The Graduate Certificate in Clinical Informatics and Digital Health is delivered by UQ’s Queensland Digital Health Centre, led by Director Professor Clair Sullivan and UQ Business School’s Professor Andrew Burton-Jones.
We are training people to be the best digital health practitioners they can be.
“This fully online course is ideal for clinicians who see themselves as future clinical information officers, chief medical information officers, chief nursing information officers, or chief allied health officers,” says Clair.
“It will develop their ability to help lead the digital transformation we all need in healthcare today.”
Learn more about the Graduate Certificate in Clinical Informatics and Digital Health
