It’s time to give health and medical students a grounding in digital health systems before they get to the workforce, says the ADHA.
Ensuring health graduates come out of university with a working knowledge of digital health systems and how they can be used is the latest project of the Australian Digital Health Agency.
The Agency will collaborate with the newly formed Australian Council of Senior Academic Leaders in Digital Health to support digital health capability for new and existing health workers, as part of the National Digital Health Capability Action Plan.
Agency CEO Amanda Cattermole said the ADHA recognised how important it was to build the digital health capability of the health workforce.
“Working in partnership with the Council, this project will support a consistent approach to digital health education at a national level, better preparing the health workforce to respond to the needs of Australians in more settings, both now and in the future,” Ms Cattermole said.
“The Agency’s vision is that university graduates enter the workforce with an understanding of digital health systems and how they can be used to support clinical decisions and provide better care.
“In an increasing digital world, a workforce with strong digital health capability ultimately benefits the patient by driving safer, higher quality care where consumers are empowered.”
The Council was launched in 2024 with 37 founding member universities to promote the use of digital technology, informatics and data science.
Inaugural council chair and director of the Queensland Digital Health Centre at the University of Queensland, Professor Clair Sullivan, said:
“The Council has been established to promote, foster and support academic collaborations that help address Australia’s key challenges and contribute to national and global health and economic prosperity.
“Our workforce needs to be supported to adapt to and embrace the future of healthcare. Embedding digital education into university degrees will positively impact Australia’s healthcare system.”
Under the new initiative, the Council will:
- establish a cross-sector, education and health industry working group and review current national digital health education competency frameworks and education course content;
- develop standardised core topics to be embedded in undergraduate health degrees and position these within existing curriculum; and,
- develop and pilot a “train the trainer” kit for educators currently teaching digital health in Australian universities.
A final report will include recommendations for the development of future resources or course content and an implementation plan to promote embedding digital health into university degrees.
DHCRC director of education and workforce Dr Melanie Haines said the collaboration with the Agency would help address the knowledge and skills gap in digital health education in Australia.
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“Digital health technologies are key to transforming healthcare outcomes, so our future workforce needs to be capable of using them,” she said.
“To keep pace with dynamic change in the health system we need an evolving curriculum to ensure health professionals can deliver optimal care.
“The Council is uniquely placed to deliver on this project given it has a national footprint and its foundation of transdisciplinary expertise and collaboration.”
