Health informatics as rebellion: a framing for introducing students to an interdisciplinary domain

Multidisciplinary fields that merge people from diverse backgrounds present pedagogical challenges for both the student and the teacher. Health informatics is once such multidisciplinary field that draws students from both clinical, social, and quantitative backgrounds. This essay explores using Freeman Dyson’s "scientist as rebel" as a framing for health informatics education to foster an inclusive and engaging introduction to the discipline. Tracing the multidisciplinary origins of health informatics, it examines the early works of informaticists Homer R. Warner and Lawrence L. Weed through Dyson’s framework. Warner’s conservative rebellion and Weed’s radical approach provide contrasting yet complementary pathways to understanding the field’s evolution and challenges. By framing health informatics as a rebellion against epistemic habits in healthcare, the essay underscores the need for intellectual freedom and creativity in navigating its intersection of science, engineering, and clinical practice. It also addresses tensions between professionalization and inclusivity. This framing aims to both introduce students to the continuing conversation of the discipline and to inspire students to challenge contemporary healthcare’s prevailing epistemic habits and to design innovative technologies that improve those habits.