Department of Health Informatics, Faculty of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Jazan University, Jazan, Jazan Province, Saudi Arabia.
Family & Community Medicine Department, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Evidence-Based Health Care & Knowledge Translation Research Chair, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Int J Med Inform. 2021 Feb;146:104362. doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2020.104362. Epub 2020 Dec 8.
Determining the key sets of competencies necessary for a Health Informatics (HI) professional to practice effectively either solo or as a member of a multidisciplinary team has been challenging for the regulator and registration body responsible for the healthcare workforce in Saudi Arabia, which is the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS).
The aim of this study was to develop a HI competency framework to guide SCFHS to introduce a HI certification program that meets local healthcare needs and is aligned with the national digital health transformation strategy.
A two-phase mixed methods approach was used in this study. For phase 1, a scoping review was conducted to identify HI competencies that have been published in the relevant literature. Out of a total 116 articles found relevant, 20 were included for further analysis. For phase 2, Saudi HI stakeholders (N = 24) that included HI professionals, administrators, academics, and healthcare professionals were identified and participated in an online survey, and asked to rank the importance of HI competencies distinguished in phase 1. To further validate and contextualize the competency framework, multiple focus groups and expert panel meetings were undertaken with the key stakeholders.
For phase 1, about 1315 competencies were initially extracted from the included studies. After iterative reviews and refinements of codes and themes, 6 preliminary domains, 23 sub-domains and 152 competencies were identified. In phase 2, a total of 24 experts participated in the online surveys and ranked 58 out of 152 competencies as 'very important/required', each received 75 % or more of votes. The remaining competencies (N = 94) were included in a list for a further discussion in the focus groups. A Total of fourteen HI experts accepted and joined in the focus groups. The multiphase approach resulted in a competency framework that included 92 competencies, that were grouped into 6 domains and 22 subdomains. The six key domains are: Core Principles; Information and Communication Technology (ICT); Health Sciences; Health Data Analytics; Education and Research; Leadership and Management.
The study developed the Saudi Health Informatics Competency Framework (SHICF) that is based on an iterative, evidence-based approach, with validation from key stakeholders. Future work should continue the validation, review, and development of the framework with continued collaboration from relevant stakeholders representing both the healthcare and educational communities. We anticipate that this work will be expanded and adopted by relative professional and scientific bodies in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.
确定卫生信息学（HI）专业人员有效实践所需的关键能力集一直是沙特阿拉伯医疗保健劳动力监管机构和注册机构（沙特卫生专业人员委员会，SCFHS）面临的挑战。
本研究旨在制定 HI 能力框架，以指导 SCFHS 推出符合当地医疗保健需求并与国家数字健康转型战略保持一致的 HI 认证计划。
本研究采用了两阶段混合方法。在第一阶段，进行了范围审查，以确定已在相关文献中发表的 HI 能力。在总共找到的 116 篇相关文章中，有 20 篇被纳入进一步分析。在第二阶段，确定了 24 名沙特 HI 利益相关者（包括 HI 专业人员、管理人员、学者和医疗保健专业人员）参与在线调查，并要求他们对第一阶段区分的 HI 能力的重要性进行排名。为了进一步验证和使能力框架具有背景意义，与主要利益相关者进行了多次焦点小组和专家小组会议。
在第一阶段，从纳入的研究中最初提取了约 1315 项能力。经过对代码和主题的迭代审查和改进，确定了 6 个初步领域、23 个子领域和 152 项能力。在第二阶段，共有 24 名专家参与了在线调查，并将 152 项能力中的 58 项评为“非常重要/必需”，每项获得 75%或更高的选票。其余的 94 项能力（N=94）被列入进一步在焦点小组中讨论的清单。共有 14 名 HI 专家接受邀请并加入了焦点小组。多阶段方法产生了一个包括 92 项能力的能力框架，这些能力被分为 6 个领域和 22 个子领域。六个关键领域是：核心原则；信息和通信技术（ICT）；卫生科学；健康数据分析；教育和研究；领导力和管理。
该研究制定了沙特卫生信息学能力框架（SHICF），该框架基于迭代的循证方法，并得到了主要利益相关者的验证。未来的工作应继续与代表医疗保健和教育界的相关利益相关者合作，对框架进行验证、审查和开发。我们预计，这项工作将在海湾合作委员会（GCC）地区得到相关专业和科学机构的扩展和采用。
