I have received this question from listeners of the Health Analytic Insights podcast, “What type of person do you think is a good fit for informatics?”. I think everyone has the ability to succeed in the field but I definitely notice some common similarities between my colleagues and others in the field.
In this field I notice people tend to enjoy working in multi-disciplinary and collaborative environments. In your job you might be working with nurses, IT, developers and people with varying backgrounds. I have noticed people in this field have a drive to learn about other’s backgrounds and what are the pain points when it comes to carrying out their tasks. Ask yourself, do you prefer to work alone or do you enjoy working with others?
In a recent episode, I interviewed Mohamed Abdelazez, who is a PhD Candidate studying Biomedical Engineering. His research consists of applying signal processing techniques to quantify the quality of ECG signals and using machine learning and deep learning techniques to detect cardiovascular diseases. In this episode, we talked about some of the differences between working in industry versus academia.
We talked about in academia, you can often be working on your own research by yourself, in some cases you will have your research advisor to guide you, but oftentimes you are creating a novel piece of work. We contrasted this, to industry where you are often working in a collaborative environment to solve a problem or create a product. You can ask yourself, which environment do you prefer? 
Also be warned in this field, you might encounter a lot of sitting and screen-time, especially clinicians who might come from working rounds on the floor this might be a big shift from your usual day job. If you are someone who prefers to be up and moving, I have found informatics roles tend to be more sedentary and similar to your typical office job, thus this is something else to consider.
Also, because you are often meeting with multiple different stakeholders, you have to be open to positive criticism and feedback on the products you create. Oftentimes the product you create will not just be for one person but can serve a diverse group and thus, it’s important to be able to take in feedback and make the necessary adjustments to the solutions you have designed.
Finally, this field is fast-paced and clinical practice is constantly changing and evolving. Therefore, I have found people who are curious and are constantly looking to learn and upgrade their skills are quite successful in this field. Whether its looking for relevant online courses, studying for certifications, taking classes or asking questions in meetings, the drive to learn more would serve someone well in a health informatics role.
Comment down below, what are common skills or similarities you have seen between health informatic professionals?
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