The importance of incorporating medical (or health) informatics into the education of medical students and medical practitioners is being increasingly recognised. The advances in information and communication technology and the pervasion of the Internet into everyday life have important implications for healthcare services and medical education. Students and practitioners should learn to utilise biomedical information for problem solving and decision making based on evidence. The extensive introduction of electronic health information systems into hospitals and clinics and at the enterprise level in Malaysia and elsewhere is driving a demand for health professionals who have at least basic skills in and appreciation of the use of these technologies. The essential clinical informatics skills have been identified and should be incorporated into the undergraduate medical curriculum. It is recommended that these be introduced in stages and integrated into existing programmes rather than taught as a separate module. At the same time, medical schools should support the integration of e-learning in the educational process in view of the numerous potential benefits.