Swansea University has today entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with St John’s Research Institute’s Division of Medical Informatics, a part of St John’s National Academy of Health Sciences. The MoU ceremony was held at St John’s Research Institute situated in Bangalore, India. This new partnership is formed to lead India on health informatics education and research.

Dr Tony D S Raj (Dean, St. John's Research Institute, Bengaluru), Rev Dr Paul Parathazham (Director, St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences, Bengaluru), Prof David Ford (Professor, Health Informatics and Lead, Health Informatics Group, Swansea University Medical School, UK) and Associate Professor Tony Paget (Lead, Health Informatics teaching team, Swansea University Medical School, UK)

The MoU will facilitate India’s first of its kind education hub specialising in health informatics to be established at St John’s Research Institute (SJRI), in partnership with Swansea University Medical School. Both institutions have also developed new links to strengthen health informatics research in their respective countries, UK and India, through the signing of today’s document

Associate Professor Tony Paget, Swansea University Medical School’s Health Informatics Teaching lead said: “Because of this unique arrangement, the education hub at SJRI can now offer students who are living in India the opportunity to study Swansea University Medical School’s two-year MSc in Health Informatics - without the need to travel to the UK. The same opportunity will subsequently be extended to its sister course – the MSc in Health Data Science.”

Studying through real-time tele-presence

The courses will be delivered by Swansea University Medical School’s health informatics teaching team through ‘real-time’ tele-presence learning, alongside students studying at Swansea University in the UK, and working in close collaboration with the team from the Division of Medical Informatics at SJRI.

Its education hub will receive its first intake of Indian students studying for the Swansea University’s two-year MSc in Health Informatics course very soon. On successful completion of the course they will be awarded a Swansea University degree.

Dr Tony Raj, Dean of St John’s Research Institute and Head of the Medical Informatics Division added: “We are delighted to have formalised a partnership with Swansea University and its Medical School, which is ranked top 3 in the UK to deliver health informatics education at SJRI in India. The objective of the MoU is to work towards the development of the health informatics profession in India; to enable professionals who are working in the health and healthcare sector in India a fresh opportunity to pursue a career in health informatics.”

Professor David Ford, Professor of Health Informatics and who leads the Health Informatics group at Swansea University Medical School said: “We are absolutely delighted to form this exciting new partnership with our colleagues at SJRI.  Together we will be able to offer an outstanding learning opportunity for students from India using a truly novel approach to teaching.

“We also see the partnership as being a perfect foundation for a range of health informatics research activities, where our skills, experience and interests are perfectly aligned, positioning us among the leading groups in the emerging field of health data science.”