Course Details in 2027/28 Session

Module Title	LM Foundations of Computing Practices in Health Data Science
School	Cancer Studies
Department	Inst of Cancer / Genomic Sci
Module Code	02 37201
Module Lead	Andreas Karwath & George Gkoutos
Level	Masters Level
Credits	20
Semester	Semester 1
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions	None
Contact Hours	Lecture-16 hours Seminar-4 hours Tutorial-4 hours Practical Classes and workshops-16 hours Guided independent study-160 hours Total: 200 hours
Exclusions
Description	The module introduces key concepts in computing practices for managing, extracting, and analysing health data. The module will provide students with an understanding of the computing concepts required to deal with health data and health information. That includes fundamental understanding of algorithms and data structures, programming skills using modern programming languages such as R and Python, and understanding of biomedical databases and how to query relational database systems. Students will engage with fundamental concepts for computer architectures and file systems and will gain knowledge about bash programming and command line interfaces. Students will learn about basic good programming practices including standards and conventions, program design, and version systems (GIT). Students will be introduced to modern electronic health record (EHR) systems and underlying standards, medical coding systems, and its use in primary and secondary health care. Students will come in contact with fundamental visualisation techniques required for health data analytics. The module will enable students to appreciate the fundamentals, challenges, as well as limitations of computing approaches and value the impact of standards and good practices in health care analytics.
Learning Outcomes	By the end of the module students should be able to: Demonstrate a critical understanding of the main computer science concepts employed in health data science Demonstrate the ability to use, modify, and develop algorithms and computer programs required to manage data contained in health information systems Understand, employ, and appraise good practices and standards in EHR systems, programming, and computing in general. Apply computer-based approaches to health care data and analyse, interpret, summarise, and present their outcomes
Assessment	37201-01 : Overall Module Mark : Mixed (100%)
Assessment Methods & Exceptions	Assessment: 1. 2 hour written exam 50% 2. Coursework total 50%: Programming Challenge with oral defence Reassessment: Academic failure: Students are required to repeat failed components only Failure to submit: Submission of coursework is compulsory for the programme. Students are advised that failure to submit without justifiable reason could result in failure of the module. Students will be required to submit outstanding work to meet the module outcomes
Other
Reading List