Health Informatics - Artificial Intelligence on health - Biomedical Technology

The Health Informatics Laboratory (Digital Health Laboratory) is part of the Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). It was officially founded in 1993, with scientific activity dating back to 1988, and it supports the Department’s educational and research work in Health Informatics and its applications.

Purpose & mission
The Laboratory helps prepare health professionals—especially nurses—for a healthcare landscape shaped by digital transformation, including electronic health records (EHRs), telemedicine, wearable sensors, robotics, online health services, health analytics, machine learning, and AI. It promotes digital literacy, enabling staff to use modern systems effectively and contribute clinical insight to their design and improvement.

Core domains
• AI and machine learning in health
• Health data management
• Intelligent health information systems and intelligent EHRs
• Health analytics and health process analytics
• Biomedical informatics and technology

In addition, the Laboratory aims to generate and disseminate knowledge, support undergraduate and postgraduate education, participate in research and development projects, collaborate with national and international partners, organise scientific activities/publications, and (where permitted) provide services to public and private organisations.

Educational activity (undergraduate & postgraduate)
The Laboratory delivers hands-on training in informatics and digital health, strengthening students’ practical IT skills and their ability to meet real healthcare workplace needs.

Indicative undergraduate courses
• Introduction to Computer Science and Health Data Management (ICT fundamentals; secure extraction, storage, and use of health data)
• Health Informatics (hospital/nursing information systems, expert systems, imaging and signal processing, multimedia education systems)
• Biomedical Informatics & Technology (biomedical devices, imaging/tomography, safety, introduction to bioinformatics)
• Health Information Systems (design and evaluation of HIS; clinical/administrative subsystems; building a sample HIS with database tools)

Postgraduate education
The Laboratory supports the interdisciplinary programme “Health Services Organisation and Management – Health Informatics” and offers courses such as:
• Informatics Principles
• Biomedical Signal and Image Analysis
• Artificial Intelligence Systems
• Electronic Health and its Applications (mobile health, cloud/big data, smart cards, sensor networks/telemetry, VR/AR, HIS/EHR concepts)

Research
The Laboratory participates in Greek and European research initiatives, producing scientific outputs in journals and conferences. Its work includes EU-funded projects, collaborations, and recent publications on topics such as AI and ethics, social media mining for health insights, cybersecurity awareness, health chatbots, and ML applications for clinical outcomes.

People, infrastructure & contact
Professor Flora Malamateniou has served as Director since 2022–2023. Facilities include a computer lab, multimedia lab, and offices, with PCs for teaching, server infrastructure, and modern classroom equipment; a major upgrade was completed in 2022 with support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

Address: Papadiamantopoulou 123, 11527, Goudi, Athens
Email: info-dhl[at]nurs[dot]uoa[dot]gr | Tel: +30 210 7461448
Website: https://dhl.nurs.uoa.gr/