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Graduate Certificate in Digital Health (Online)

Strengthen your foundations in digital health practice

100% online
delivery

Values-driven health expertise

Career-connected learning

Pathway into the master’s

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Build the skills to support the digital transformation of healthcare

  • 1 year part-time
  • $2,317 – $4,376 per unit
  • 40 credits points

Healthcare is increasingly digital, from electronic health records through to data-informed decision making. At its core, digital health is putting patients first and recognising how technology shapes the experiences of patients, clinicians and services every day.

The Graduate Certificate in Digital Health (Online) is designed for professionals who want to build a strong, practical foundation in how digital technologies are implemented, governed and improved within healthcare settings.

You’ll explore health data, electronic records, service delivery and responsible practice, with learning grounded in real-world contexts, not just theory.

As part of this course, you’ll:

  • build real-world capability across health data and digital systems
  • understand how digital technologies function within everyday healthcare settings
  • develop confidence navigating ethics, governance and patient safety
  • study flexibly around work and life
  • progress into the diploma and master’s degree when you’re ready.

Certificate details

  • 4 units
  • 100% online
  • FEE-HELP available for eligible students
  • Commonwealth supported places available
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Course structure

4 units

1 year part-time online study

The Graduate Certificate in Digital Health (Online) is delivered fully online and designed for working professionals. Learning is practical and grounded in modern healthcare systems, guided by academics with experience across health and digital environments.

Across four units, you’ll build foundational knowledge and skills in health data, electronic records, digital service delivery and ethical implementation – developing essential practical skills you can apply directly within your workplace.

This course is offered over four 10-week terms per year. You’ll access your learning materials from the start of each term and progress at your own pace. Some courses require on-campus intensives or in-person placements.

Required Digital Health units

Health data is foundational to safe, effective and interoperable digital health systems, and the ability to understand, model and govern these data is essential for health and ICT professionals. Students will develop core high-level competencies in health data structures, standards, terminologies, system architectures and governance frameworks, supporting evidence-based decision making, digital transformation and the safe use of health technologies in clinical and organisational settings. Through the study of digital health ecosystems, electronic health records, interoperability standards, data models, ontologies, storage platforms and governance systems, they will learn how data are created, managed, exchanged and safeguarded across the health sector, with the unit integrating practical and strategic perspectives to support the application of standards, enhance system usability and ensure ethical and legislative compliance in the use of health information. By engaging with real-world case studies, emerging technologies and contemporary data practices, students will develop the knowledge required to contribute effectively to digital health design, implementation and policy development. The aim of this unit is to enable students to understand and apply health data standards that support safe, interoperable and future-ready digital health systems.
Strategic management in health service delivery addresses health system design, delivery and evaluation. Globalisation has brought the need for healthcare management to be strategically planned and delivered with an awareness of both local and global implications because a broad-based response or approach may be required to address health service issues. This unit is required for students to develop a comprehensive understanding of the knowledge and skills, including critical analytical skills, required to apply a contextual, integrative approach to strategic management in health service delivery. In this unit students will consider the broad context of strategic health service management with reference to health service funding and health service delivery. Students will reflect on how awareness of strategy as it applies to health-related issues can influence consumer advocacy and political lobbying for the common good. In critically evaluating strategic, contemporary health service management students will develop skills in addressing national and international health priorities from a long term, consultative, social justice and equity perspective. The aim of this unit is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the theoretical basis underpinning health care management strategy and the ability to evaluate the implications of strategic decisions on health outcomes.
Given its increasing reliance on advanced digital technologies and data accessibility, contemporary healthcare practice is faced with a range of complex ethical and legal challenges that need to be carefully understood and addressed. Ranging from issues concerning the ownership and secure use of patient data, to issues in research ethics, and the uses of artificial intelligence in therapeutic decision making, powerful new and emerging technologies raise many issues that require careful consideration. This unit names and explores such challenges with the aim of equipping students with the knowledge and skills to think, judge and respond appropriately on the basis of clear ethical principles, to current and emerging challenges in professional practice, thereby ensuring respect for human dignity whilst working for the common good. In so doing, it also provides insights into the larger social and commercial contexts within which clinical and healthcare management decisions are made.
Digital transformation is fundamental to the delivery of safe, efficient and person-centred healthcare, and the ability to understand, design and implement transformative digital practices is essential for health and ICT professionals. Students will develop core capabilities in systems thinking, digital maturity assessment, governance, human-centred design and the strategic use of enabling technologies, supporting improved clinical outcomes, enhanced patient and provider experience, and sustainable organisational innovation. Through the study of digital health ecosystems, technology platforms, data, artificial intelligence, automation, change management and evaluation frameworks, students will learn how digital solutions are conceived, developed, implemented and measured across diverse healthcare environments, with the unit integrating practical and strategic perspectives to strengthen adoption, promote quality, enhance safety, and support clinical decision making. By engaging with real-world case studies, emerging technologies and contemporary digital health practices, students will develop the knowledge and applied skills required to contribute effectively to digital transformation, service redesign and innovation across the health sector. The aim of this unit is to enable students to understand and apply digital transformation principles that support safe, scalable and future ready healthcare systems.

Digital health capability is increasingly central to how healthcare is delivered

Digital systems now underpin how healthcare is coordinated, delivered, recorded and improved. Organisations need professionals who understand both the clinical environment and the digital systems that support it.

Career outcomes may include:

  • health data analyst
  • digital health project officer/manager
  • health information specialist
  • clinical systems coordinator
  • digital health transformation roles

Top careers:

Project manager $150,000 AUD per year1

Information specialist $113,000 AUD per year2

Entry requirements

Application deadline 15-Jan-2027

Start date 1-Feb-2027

To apply for this course, you’ll need:

  • A bachelor’s degree (or higher), OR
  • Submit your resume and demonstrate suitability for study and industry experience and/or prior learning over a sustained period.
How to apply

Fee details

$2,317 – $4,376 per unit

8 units

FEE-HELP available

The cost of study is an important consideration when planning your future, and the tuition outlined here is designed to give you a clear and transparent understanding of what to expect for the Graduate Certificate in Digital Health (Online).

This course can be supported through the FEE-HELP government loan scheme. If you are an Australian citizen or hold a permanent humanitarian visa, you may not need to pay upfront. Get in touch with our team for more information.

Fees & support

Your teachers

ACU’s digital health courses are taught by academics and practitioners working across healthcare systems, digital implementation and ethical governance. Their expertise ensures learning remains grounded in real-world health environments, patient-centred practice and responsible innovation.

What’s it like to learn online?

As an ACU Online student, you’ll study the same curriculum taught on campus, with the flexibility to learn where and when it suits you. ACU’s digital learning platform connects you with expert educators, live tutorials and interactive coursework designed for flexibility and support. Whether you’re balancing work, family or other commitments, you’ll have the tools, structure and guidance to learn, succeed and excel at your own pace.

Sources

  1. How to become a project manager https://au.seek.com/career-advice/role/project-manager.
  2. How to become an information specialist https://au.seek.com/career-advice/role/information-specialist.