Department of Public Health and Welfare, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland.
Faculty of Health and Well-being, Turku University of Applied Sciences, Master School, Turku, Finland.
Int J Health Policy Manag. 2024;13:8309. doi: 10.34172/ijhpm.8309. Epub 2024 Jun 24.
The rapid advancement of technology in healthcare is creating new competency requirements for professionals, such as skills for data management and the adoption of new technologies, understanding the effect of digitalisation on clinical processes, and evaluating clinical safety and ethics within the context of digitalisation. These requirements call for improved educational curricula and ongoing continuing education in digital skills. This study, as part of the Digital Skills Training for Health Care Professionals in Oncology (DigiCanTrain) project, aims to map and describe the existing continuing education in digital skills for healthcare professionals (HCPs) in European Union (EU) Member States. Using a mapping study methodology, data was collected from experts in 25 EU countries through surveys and from online sources. Qualitative content analysis was used for categorising the data. The results show variations between countries in policy strategies, training organisation, and funding mechanisms. Educational institutions, employers, third parties, and national/regional authorities were found to be the main organisers of the digital skills training. Comprehensive accreditation systems seemed to be scarce, and practices also varied between countries. The study highlights the importance of adopting a systematic approach to enhancing continuous professional development in digital skills, which would ensure that professionals have equitable access to education, resulting in consistent, quality patient care across countries and regions. The findings offer valuable insights for policymakers, educators, healthcare institutions, and professionals.
医疗保健领域技术的快速发展正在为专业人员创造新的能力要求，例如数据管理技能和新技术的采用、理解数字化对临床流程的影响，以及在数字化背景下评估临床安全性和伦理学。这些要求需要改进教育课程和数字化技能的持续继续教育。本研究作为肿瘤学中医疗保健专业人员数字技能培训（DigiCanTrain）项目的一部分，旨在对欧盟成员国医疗保健专业人员（HCPs）现有的数字技能继续教育进行映射和描述。使用映射研究方法，通过调查和在线资源从 25 个欧盟国家的专家那里收集数据。采用定性内容分析对数据进行分类。结果显示，各国在政策战略、培训组织和资金机制方面存在差异。教育机构、雇主、第三方和国家/地区当局被发现是数字技能培训的主要组织者。全面的认证系统似乎很少见，各国的做法也存在差异。该研究强调了采用系统方法来增强数字技能持续专业发展的重要性，这将确保专业人员平等获得教育，从而在国家和地区之间实现一致、高质量的患者护理。研究结果为政策制定者、教育工作者、医疗机构和专业人员提供了有价值的见解。
