The Institute is already working with many health professions on workforce advancement through accreditation and training, with programs focusing on digital health basics to more advanced workforce-based programs aiming to build capability across the health sector.
By fostering collaboration and cross-partnerships, our strategy is to take digital health out to every healthcare professional, whatever level of knowledge they may have as a starting point.
When the Institute held its Digital Health Summit in Sydney (October 2022) it was a prime opportunity to make workforce capability and development a central theme. More than 1,100 delegates from across the digital health community considered some of the key issues facing our health workforce, including talent attraction and retention; upskilling and education; and awareness of digital health career pathways.
During the summit the Australian Digital Health Agency (the Agency) announced the launch of the National Digital Health Capability Action Plan (CAP) to be delivered in collaboration with the Institute over the next several years. The Institute is currently working to deliver the foundational pieces of this plan:
- A standard Digital Health Capability Framework
Several profession-specific digital health capability frameworks have been developed in Australia. It is time to take this work forward to develop a framework that can be applied across all health professions, regardless of role or work setting. Leveraging existing resources and in consultation with key stakeholders, the Institute is developing a standard framework along with assessment and readiness tools to support practical application. The drafted framework and resources will be tested with a range of partners in the workplace over the coming months. - Digital health careers
To support the attraction and retention of talent in digital health, the Institute is working to develop a guide to career options. The work will seek to identify in-demand skills or roles in the sector, define entry points to digital health, and provide direction on mechanisms to develop knowledge, skills and capabilities to commence or advance a career in digital health - A digital health hub
The development of an online hub for digital health will be supported by these foundational pieces of work relating to digital health capabilities and careers. The hub will act as a ‘one-stop-shop’ for resources, information and opportunities for those working, or seeking to work, in digital health.
If you would like to know more about these program activities, wish to participate, or be interviewed about your career or career aspirations, we would love to hear from you. You can contact [email protected] or call the AIDH office.
This year, the first cohort of 25 participants completed the Women in Digital Health Leadership program. Applications for 2023 are now open. In addition, the Institute’s Certified Health Informatician Australasia (CHIA) program offers an opportunity to achieve certification in health informatics for a broad range of candidates, with over 1600 now certified. Additional courses, resources and pathways, such as a Clinical Informatics Fellowship, are also in development. Together with the CAP, these activities will advance the goal of a workforce with strong digital health capabilities, delivering services that promote consumer access, ownership and choice.
Read the CAP media release here