Public Health Informatics and Technology for DC (PHIT4DC)
Certificate Training for USVI Residents

The Howard University College of Pharmacy (HUCOP) and the Office of Health Information Technology (OHIT) collaborated to create two new initiatives – Public Health Informatics & Technology for the US Virgin Islands, a workforce training program, and the Digital Research Initiative, which will afford Virgin Islanders opportunities to advance in the fields of public health informatics, health information and telehealth.

The USVI Office of Health Information Technology, led by Executive Director Michelle M. Francis, was established in 2021 by Governor Albert Bryan Jr. to enhance health and wellness in the USVI through innovative and transformative health information technology resources. As such, the two major collaborative initiatives are detailed below:

  • Workforce Training Initiative: This workforce training initiative named PHIT4VI (Public Health Informatics & Technology for the US Virgin Islands) exchange program, was tailored by Dr. Awuonda for the USVI and is a program that allows students, health professionals and IT professionals from the US Virgin Islands to participate in the public health informatics and training (PHIT) programs as Howard University exchange students. The program includes elective courses, bootcamps, and workshops. The inaugural PHIT4VI cohort included eight (8) PHIT Exchange participants who gained knowledge on defining public health informatics and health information technology, understanding the context of population health, care coordination, interoperable health IT systems, hands on training with electronic health record (EHR) and exposure to the health information exchange (HIE) data systems (specifically CRISP Shared Services) to advance population health.
  • Digital Research Initiative: The digital health research initiative focuses on collaborative research in telehealth through HUCOP’s Telepharmacy and Population Health Center (HUTEPH). The Center was officially launched April 20th, 2023, but was in development from April 2021 under the Directorship of Dr. Mary K. Awuonda. A demonstration project is being developed with Howard University College of Pharmacy and the Schneider Regional Medical Center (SRMC) located in St. Thomas USVI. The first goal of the program is to initiate a telehealth supported, pharmacist-led, transitions of care program and the second goal is to enhance SRMC’s existing Meds to Bedside Medication Management and Compliance Program.


The program includes elective courses, bootcamps, and workshops. The first PHIT4VI inaugural cohort began in Fall 2023 and included 10 inaugural PHIT Exchange participants who gained knowledge on defining public health informatics and health information technology, understanding the context of population health, care coordination, interoperable health IT systems, along with hands-on training with electronic health records (EHRs) and exposure to the health information exchange (HIE) data systems (specifically CRISP Shared Services) to advance population health.

Howard University and University of the Virgin Islands leadership have also recently been exploring additional digital research and collaborative opportunities around pharmacy and PharmD pathways, essentially tailoring the Public Health Informatics and Technology program for UVI’s enrolled and prospective students.

Cross-cutting these initiatives is the achievement of core strategic objectives for all entities in the collaboration. The renewed partnerships are a start of a long-term strategy to expand training and research between The Government of the US Virgin Islands, led by the Office of Health Information Technology, and Howard University College of Pharmacy.