The document summarizes the evolution of the Department of Medical Education at UMMS into the new Department of Learning Health Sciences. The new department broadens the scope to focus on learning at different scales from individual to organization-wide. It aims to advance the science of learning applied to health through research, education, and promoting continuous learning and improvement within health systems to make them "learning health systems". Realizing this vision requires overcoming challenges through new learning sciences and building collaborations across different fields.

1. The Department of Learning
Health Sciences
Charles P. Friedman, PhD
Josiah Macy Jr. Professor of Medical
Education
Chair, Department of Learning Health
Sciences, Medical School
Professor of Information and Public
Health

2. Skating to Where the
Puck is Going to Be
Wayne Gretzky
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3. In this Spirit,
The UMMS Department of Medical
Education
has evolved into a
first-in-the-nation
Department of Learning Health
Sciences
3

4. A New Perspective on Learning
• Learning is a process of study and
change, leading to improvement
• Learning occurs at different levels of scale:
– Individual -Group
– Organization
– Ultra-large scale
4

5. We Broadened the Department to Focus
on Learning at All Levels of Scale
• At individual and team
levels, this invokes the
original focus on medical
education
• At organization and ultra-
large (system) scale, this
extends the mission to
include the Learning Health
System
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6. Department Organization
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Pre-existing
• Division of Professional Education:
Learning by individuals and groups
• Clinical Simulation Center: Developing
and deploying advanced simulation
technology to promote learning by
individuals and groups
New
• Division of Learning and Knowledge
Systems: Learning at the organizational
level and at ultra-large scale

7. We Are a Basic Science Department
• Research: Generate and communicate
new knowledge that advances the
sciences of learning applied to health
– New Academic Journal
• Education: Prepare a next generation of
educators and learning scientists; fold
learning science into health professional
curricula
– Graduate programs
• Service: Promote learning and learning
systems at all levels of scale
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8. The Learning Health System
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Where learning meets health. Health systems
become learning systems when they can
continuously study and improve themselves
Perspective: Jan 3, 2013"
“Code Red and Blue — Safely Limiting
Health Care’s GDP Footprint”"
"Arnold Milstein, M.D., M.P.H."
…U.S.
health
care
needs
to
adopt
new
work
methods,
outlined
in
the
Ins9tute
of
Medicine’s
vision
for
a
learning
health
system…
Reduce
Bench
to
Bedside
Latency:
17
Years
to
17
Months
to
17
Weeks
to
17
Days
to
17
Hours

9. A Health System That Can Learn
• Every consenting patient’s characteristics
and experience are available for study
• Best practice knowledge is immediately
available to support decisions
• Improvement is continuous through ongoing
study
• This happens routinely, economically and
almost invisibly
• All of this is part of the culture
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10. Learning Health Systems Require Platforms
to Support Learning Cycles
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Different
Problems
Rapid
Cycle
Slower
Cycle
SUPPORTING
PLATFORM
People
Process
Technology
Policy

11. Example: Learning “Islands”
• Organizations that have become Learning
Health Systems at their level of scale.
• But don’t routinely connect with other islands.
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12. Example: Inter-organizational
Data Federations and Networks
12
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13. The Challenge Is…
We’re still figuring out how to
do this
High functioning learning
health systems raise many
deep scientific challenges
13

14. The New Learning Science
• How to enable learning that is effective,
continuous, sustainable, routine
• And at any level of scale
SemanNcs,
Knowledge
RepresentaNon
and
Management
Decision
Science
CommunicaNon
and
Behavior
Change
ImplementaNon
Science
Complexity
&
System
Science
Economics
Policy
Science
Data
Science
Machine
Learning
&
AnalyNcs

15. Funding Opportunities and an
Emerging National Community
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16. Reaching Across the University
A “Legion” of 80+ UM Collaborators
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17. Let’s Keep in Touch
• Write to me: cpfried@umich.edu
• Our website: LHS.medicine.umich.edu
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